Glasses of Wine
by Atramea
Summary: Caleb Rivers, thirty-two years old, dentist, married. Hanna Marin, twenty-three, his secretary, taken. What will happen when, between glasses of wine, they find out they have in common more than they thought they had? [Haleb; AU; Multichapter; Rated M for mature content]
1. Chapter 1

Hanna sighed as another woman came into her small office.

"Hi, doctor Rivers told me to talk with you to take the next appointment." she said.

"Yes, that's right. Have a seat, please." Hanna replied.

The woman sat on the chair in front of her desk.

"What's your name, ma'am?" Hanna asked, opening an agenda.

"Linda Parker."

"Uhm... Well, we could set your appointment next Friday at 6:00 pm. Doctor Rivers isn't free before then, I'm sorry."

"No problem. Friday at 6:00 pm it is. Thank you."

"You're welcome. Have a good evening, mrs Parker."

"Thank you."

And with that, the woman exited the office. Hanna leaned back in her chair and rubbed her temples, closing her eyes.

She had been working in that dentist studio for two months. She just planned the appointments for him, Caleb Rivers, better known as the very respectable doctor Rivers, the best tooth doctor in town. She needed some money to pay for her college and, with the help of her boyfriend, Sean Ackard, she had found that job. Sean's father, John, was a dentist as well, but he was working in another town. He knew Caleb, even though Caleb was something like ten or fifteen years younger than him, and he also knew how professional he was, despite his rather young age, so had managed to find that job for Hanna, since Caleb was working in her same town. Sean didn't need to work, he went to college like her, but unlike her he was rich. But Hanna needed to. Sean had offered to pay for her college as well, but she hadn't accepted it. She had to make it by herself, she was too proud. She was twenty-three and she needed to be responsible.

Caleb, instead, was thirty-two. He had started working as a dentist as soon as he had gotten out of college. He was a man respected in the whole town, and also outside. He was married, but Hanna had never seen his wife. She had noticed his wedding ring and had asked around about his wife, since she was really curious, and people just told her that he had been married to a certain Melissa, for a year and something, but that she was practically never around. She didn't know much else about Caleb Rivers, except for the fact that he was a really good-looking and charming man, kind and polite, who once in a while found even the time to bring her a coffee and, yes, that he was her boss. That was enough.

"Hanna?"

Hanna lifted her head and saw Caleb standing on the doorway of her office.

"Yes?" she replied quickly.

"You can go. We're done here for today." he smiled.

"Thanks, doctor Rivers." she replied, standing up from her chair.

"Sean is waiting for you outside. You can finally take a break from all of this burocratic stuff." he smiled as she handed him the agenda.

Sean always came to pick Hanna up to go out when she finished work. The neighborhood of the studio was also pretty much the worst of the town, so he was always in time to avoid any danger.

"No problem, doctor. It's not so bad." Hanna replied to Caleb.

"Yeah, well... But you sure will enjoy a nice Friday night with your boyfriend than staying here, I guess. Have a good evening, Hanna."

Hanna smiled at him and nodded.

"You too, doctor." she said before leaving.

* * *

"Hey." Sean said when Hanna got into his car.

"Hi." Hanna replied, quickly kissing him on the lips.

"How was your day?"

"Good, I guess."

"You know, I think Rivers makes you work too much. It's half past seven already!"

"Sean, technically my time is until eight 'o clock. Rivers always makes me leave earlier."

"Well, in my opinion is too much anyway." Sean snapped, turning on the engine of his car.

"It's well-paid. And doctor Rivers is a good man. Actually, I find pretty nice to work there."

Sean sighed and pulled out the driveway.

"Where are we going?" Hanna asked.

"I don't know. Cinema, as always?"

Sean seemed a little pissed. Hanna didn't know why, though, since she hadn't done anything wrong or different from the other days.

"Sean, what's up?" she asked.

"You mean?" he replied, without taking his eyes off the road.

"You seem annoyed. Did I do something wrong?"

"No. No, nothing. I'm just... I'm tired. Today I had a lacrosse match, and I'm tired."

"Well, it's okay. We don't need to go out tonight. Just take me home and that's fine. Go get some sleep."

Sean stopped the car and turned to her.

"I was kinda hoping you were gonna say that." he smiled slightly.

Hanna smiled back.

"You just needed to tell me, Sean. You can tell me anything, you know that, right?" she added, reaching out to stroke his cheek.

Sean nodded and gave her another smile before restarting the car, heading to her house.

* * *

Sean took Hanna home, a nice house at the end of the street where she lived with her mother Ashley. He gave her a quick peck and then Hanna got out of the car and rang the doorbell, as Sean's car speeded away.

"Hey, sweetheart." Ashley smiled when she opened the door to her daughter.

"Hi, mom." Hanna replied, getting in the house.

Ashley closed the door.

"I thought you were going out with Sean..." she told her.

"Yeah, well... He said he was tired tonight. He wanted to go home." Hanna shrugged.

"How did it go at the dentist studio today?"

"Fine. Doctor Rivers is always nice to me."

"He's a good man. You were lucky John knew him and managed to get you this job. I'm so proud of you."

Hanna smiled at her mother. She was currently without a job, that's why Hanna had to work to pay for her own college. But she loved her mom to pieces, and she knew that if she could, she would pay for her. But right now she couldn't. Her dad was an ass, who chose to pay for her stepdaughter's college instead Hanna's, while her mom was probably the most important person of her life.

"Thank you, mom." she said.

Then, Hanna looked through her purse to grab her mobile, but she found something else.

"Oh, no..." she muttered.

"What?" Ashley asked.

"Sean's wallet is in my purse. This morning, he gave it to me and then I totally forgot to give it back to him. Tomorrow's Saturday, he's going to that reunion with his dad in the morning, so he's gonna need his ID. Shit."

"Well, call him. He probably didn't get home yet. Tell him to come for a sec to take it."

Hanna snorted, then replied.

"No, I'd better go to him. I know Sean, he said he's tired, so if he's already home, he'll be pissed as hell if he has to go out again. I'll just drive to his house, I'll be right back."

* * *

Hanna drove until Sean's house. She was surprised seeing there was another car parked in the driveway, next to his. She had the feeling she had already seen it before, though. However, she got out of her car and walked to the front door, but stopped before knocking. She heard some loud laughter coming from inside. A _woman_ 's laughter.

"You told her you were tired? That's the worst excuse ever!" she laughed.

"Well, she believed me... But... Who cares?" Sean's voice replied.

"Yeah... Who cares?"

"Can we just stop talking about her and have some fun now?"

"That's why I'm here..."

Hanna froze. She could perfectly picture what was going on. She suddenly got angrier than ever, clenching her hands in fists and knocking hard on the door.

"Who is it?" Sean's surprised voice asked from inside.

"That stupid girl who believed you were tired!" she grunted.

Sean opened the door, biting his lip. He was shirtless and clearly embarassed.

"Hanna, I'm s—" he tried to say, but she cut him off.

"I don't wanna hear a single word more from your fucking mouth! I just wanted to bring you your stupid wallet, because I was worried you would have needed your ID for tomorrow's reunion with your dad, but I guess there is actually no reunion... It was probably another excuse to screw your stupid whore in there. Fuck you, Sean Ackard! I don't have anything more to say."

"Hanna, I was going to tell you—"

"Shut the fuck up, Sean!" she snapped, cutting him off again.

She was storming off to leave, but she gave one last glance to Sean's porch. There was Sydney Driscoll with him, a bitch she knew from college. She turned around for good and got into her car, starting to cry.

 _What a crappy day._

* * *

 **A/N: Hello everyone! Here's my new story *yeeeeeeeeeep* :D So, just a few things... Caleb's wife will be portrayed by Melissa Hastings, yes, that Melissa, but keep in mind that she's NOT Spencer's sister in this story. Remember it, because Spencer will be in this story as well as a friend of Hanna's, but she's not Melissa's sister in this story, okay? Then, I want to tell you that there's a lot to find out about Caleb's marriage, so don't start thinking about an infidelity story between him and Hanna... It won't be like that, okay? It will be a Haleb (very)passionate story ;) and there are gonna be a lot of surprises and plot twistes... I hope you guys will like it ;) This is kind of different from my other stories, but I'm enjoying a lot writing it. Also, I promise you tons of hot scenes :P Poor Hanna though :( Sean cheated on her, yeah. But, man, what a way to find out :( What will happen next? :O ...Oh, yes, the title of this fanfic will soon make sense. Just be patient :) Also, yes, the following chapters are gonna be longer :) Now tell me if this first chapter intrigued you and leave a review ;) All of your comments, positive or negative, are accepted, of course ;) Waiting for your opinionssss :) Thanks for reading this one too ;) Love you all, have a nice day! Until next time! xx -Atramea.**


	2. Chapter 2

Monday had come. Hanna had gone back to college in the morning, and now was at the dentist studio, planning Caleb's agenda. She was really angry for what happened with Sean, but work really helped her to keep her mind busy. It was seven 'o clock when Caleb got into the office.

"Hanna, can I talk to you for a minute?" he asked from the doorway.

Hanna looked up at him. _Oh no_ , she thought. John Ackard, Sean's dad, had made her get that job, being kind of friend with Caleb. But now that she and Sean weren't together anymore...could she keep working for him?

"Of course, doctor Rivers." she said, nodding.

Caleb smiled slightly and sat on the chair in front of her desk, pursing his lips.

"So, Hanna... You're free to go, but... I'd be really pleased if you told me what's up." he told her.

Hanna furrowed her eyebrows.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

Caleb sighed and leaned forward, folding his hands on the desk.

"I've never seen you this way. You look sad, or maybe even... _hurt_. Did something bad happen? Do you need a few days off, maybe?" he asked, sounding concerned.

Hanna took a deep breath, trying to keep a normal expression and forcing a smile.

"No, doctor. Everything's fine." she said, even though she could feel her eyes getting watery.

"You've been working here for two months, Hanna. You've always been a smiley girl, and happy, and you've always brought a great gust of positivity in here, every single day. But not today. Are you sure you're okay?"

Hanna sighed deeply and took a moment to close her eyes, lowering her head a little, almost ashamed.

"I failed an exam today." she breathed out finally, lying.

Caleb raised his eyebrows and titled his head to the side, slowly nodding.

"I know it sounds stupid, but... It was kinda important to me." Hanna continued.

"No, it doesn't sound stupid at all. I was in college too, I know how it sucks when something goes wrong. I'm sorry, Hanna." he replied.

Hanna gave him a small smile.

"However, I'm sure you're gonna make up for it. You're a determined person, I know that." he continued, smiling as well.

"Thank you, doctor. I'll do my best. And I'm sorry if I acted weird, I hope no one of your patients complained about me..."

Caleb laughed slightly at her last statement.

"No one has _ever_ complained about you since you started working here. Everyone has always a nice word on you." he smiled.

Hanna smiled again, locking eyes with Caleb for a short moment.

"Well... You can go. And I can too. Thank God, another day is over." he said, raising his eyebrows and standing up from the chair.

Hanna got up as well and grabbed her purse, as Caleb opened the door.

"Oh, I was forgetting... Sean's not outside today. Do you have a ride?" he asked.

Hanna sighed and forced another smile.

"Yeah, he... He couldn't pick me up today. I came with my car, don't worry, doctor." she said.

"Okay. I'll see you tomorrow, Hanna."

"Yeah. Have a good evening."

And then, Caleb walked to his studio, probably to change his clothes, while Hanna went outside and got in her car. She stayed still for a few seconds, leaning by the wheel and taking deep breaths not to cry. Caleb was going to find out about her break-up with Sean, sooner or later. What if he's gonna fire her? After all, she was there because of Sean's father's intercession. She shook her head quickly and tried to start the engine of her car, but it didn't.

"Shit. Come on..." she muttered, trying again.

Nothing. Her car seemed dead.

"Fucking hell!" she shouted, punching the wheel.

And then she broke down. Her boyfriend had cheated on her, her car was dead, and now she didn't even know how to get home. She couldn't call Sean, like she would have done once, for obvious reasons. She couldn't call her mom either, they had just one car and that was the one in which Hanna currently was. And she didn't feel like calling one of her friends, it was almost dinner time and she didn't want to bother anyone. She was going to take the bus, that was the only way. And she _hated_ taking the bus. But then, a tap on her car window caught her attention. It was Caleb, now dressed like a normal person and not like a dentist. Hanna quickly wiped the few tears which had fallen from her eyes and pulled down the window.

"Hey... Everything alright?" he asked.

"My car just decided to abandon me." she sighed.

"Oh... I'm gonna take a look if that's okay with you."

"Sure. Thank you."

Hanna got out of the car and approached Caleb, who had opened the hood of the car. He took a look, but didn't really figure out what had happened.

"Ugh... I can't see the problem." he muttered, scratching the back of his neck.

"It's fine. Go home, doctor. Thanks anyway."

"Have you called someone to pick you up? I'm not leaving you alone here, at least until they come and pick you up. It's already dark, you're in the middle of the street and this is not the nicest area of the city..."

Hanna sighed.

"Hanna? Have you called Sean or someone?" he insisted.

"No one can come and pick me up at the moment... I'm just gonna wait the next bus."

"Oh... Well, there's no problem. Look... We just call a tow truck and then I'll drive you home."

"Oh, no, doctor... I don't wanna bother you, nor make you get home late. Your wife is probably waiting for you, and—"

"Hanna, don't worry about me. Let me help you, okay?" he cut her off, smiling.

Hanna sighed but didn't reject his offer. Caleb called the tow truck, explaining them the situation. He was leaning by his expensive black BMW, in his buttoned purple shirt and a pair of jeans while speaking into his grey iPhone 6 Plus, with his gold wedding ring sparkling under the streetlight. Hanna caught herself staring at him. He was definitely a really handsome man. And he was also so kind and charming. She wasn't surprised he was already married. He walked back to her after a little while, smiling slightly.

"They'll be here in a few minutes." he told her.

"Thank you, doctor."

"Anytime. Do you have a way to come to work tomorrow, just in case?"

"Yeah, I can take the bus."

"Okay. But I'd rather you not to come back home by bus, too, when it's dark. Like I said, this is not a good neighborhood, unfortunately."

Hanna just nodded at that. She liked how protective he was.

"I'm sure Sean will be willing to take you home." Caleb added.

Hanna smiled uncomfortably at that, then Caleb pulled out a cigarette and a lighter from his pocket.

"Do you smoke?" Hanna couldn't help but ask.

Caleb laughed slightly, with the cigarette between his lips.

"I know, I know... A dentist shouldn't smoke. It's not good for teeth. I tell my patients over and over. But, well, I must have my shortcomings too, right?" he mumbled.

Hanna laughed.

"Right." she added, as Caleb lightened up his cigarette.

"What about you? Do you smoke?"

"No, I don't."

Caleb blew out a stream of smoke and then looked at Hanna.

"So... Do you have any shortcoming or not?" he asked with one of his charming smiles.

Hanna blushed slightly and giggled.

"Of course I do. Smoke isn't one of them, that's all." she replied.

Caleb smiled and finished smoking his cigarette in silence. Just when he threw it to the ground, the tow truck arrived. They took away Hanna's car, telling her it needed at least one week to be fixed. Then, Caleb gestured for Hanna to reach his BMW, and she did. He opened the passenger door for her like a perfect gentleman and when she was inside, he also closed it, before joining her in the driver seat.

"Okay, you're gonna have to tell me where to go though, because I don't know where you live." he began, closing his door and starting the engine of his car.

"Uhm, sure. Thank you very much, doctor."

Caleb pulled out of the parking lot and turned to her for a brief moment.

"Hanna, it's been two months that we know each other. You can call me Caleb, okay? 'Doctor' makes me feel kind of old. And you're welcome." he told her, raising his eyebrows.

Hanna smiled at him and gave him the indications to reach her house. They got there in about twenty minutes.

"Thank you again, doc—ehm, Caleb." Hanna said.

"No problem. And if tomorrow evening Sean or anyone else can't come to pick you up, just ask me, okay?" he replied, smiling.

"Okay." she just said before opening her door.

"Goodnight, Hanna. See you tomorrow."

"Yeah... Goodnight, Caleb."

And with that, Hanna closed the door and walked to her front door.

"Hey, Han... You're a little late today." Ashley commented as Hanna entered the house.

"Something in the engine of our car is broken. The tow truck took it away. It will need a week to get fixed." Hanna breathed out.

"What?" Ashley asked.

"Yeah... We don't have the car for the whole week. First Sean cheating on me, now this... Crap."

Ashley sighed and sat on the couch next to Hanna.

"I'm sorry, sweetie. How are you?" she asked, grabbing her daughter's hand.

Hanna forced a little smile and nodded.

"Better, mom. Thanks." she murmured.

Ashley smiled back. She had been comforting Hanna since the Friday night she got back from Sean's house crying her eyes out.

"How did you get home, by the way? Did you take the bus?" Ashley asked then.

Hanna raised her eyebrows.

"I was going to take the bus, yeah, but then doctor Rivers saw me and offered his help. He called the tow truck, then waited with me for them to come, and when they took my car away he gave me a ride with his one. He said he didn't want me to take the bus by night because it could be dangerous." she explained, shrugging slightly.

"He's a true gentleman."

Hanna sighed.

"He doesn't know about me and Sean yet, though." she said then.

"So what?"

"C'mon, mom. I'm working for him thanks to Sean's father. But now that Sean and I are no longer together, well... I don't know if he will make me keep working there."

"Hanna, you're doing a good job. And Rivers seems a nice man. I'm sure he's not gonna fire you just because you don't have bounds with the Ackard's family anymore."

Hanna sighed.

"I don't know, mom. I just need to eat something. Tell me that dinner's ready, please." she said then.

Ashley laughed slightly.

"Almost. But, hey, doctor Rivers is right. I don't want you to take the bus by night from that neighborhood." she replied, walking to the stoves.

"I'm grown enough. Besides it will be just for this week, mom. Don't worry."

"You can ask one of your friends."

"Mom, I don't want to bother anyone. I'm twenty-three, I can take care of myself. Going to work by bus for a week, well, actually for four days, is not gonna kill me."

"Whatever. But be careful when it's dark." Ashley sighed.

"I will." Hanna replied, slightly rolling her eyes.

* * *

The next day, after college, Hanna went to work by bus. She hated the look that a couple of guys gave her when she got in and when she got out —she made a mental note not to wear a skirt the next day— but she eventually arrived at the studio safe and sound. It was rather early, since the only bus in the afternoon was that one she had taken and it arrived there half an hour before the beginning of her shift, so she got to the studio earlier.

She walked into the studio, noticing Caleb's door opened. He was already dressed in his work clothes and was fixing his instruments.

"Good afternoon, doctor." Hanna said, standing in the doorway.

Caleb turned around and smiled at her.

"Hey, Hanna. Hi. You're early." he replied.

"Yeah, the bus came soon. Can I help you?"

"No, don't worry. I've already organized everything. But... Please, 'Caleb', not 'doctor'. Alright?" he grinned.

Hanna nodded, smiling slightly.

"Yeah, yeah. That's right." she commented.

"Is someone going to pick you up later?"

"Yes." she lied.

She didn't want him to feel obliged to take her home even that day. Or also to feel used as her personal driver. That was the last thing she wanted.

"Okay, great." he said.

"Well, I'm going to open the office. I'll see you later...Caleb."

Caleb nodded and flashed her another smile before she disappeared through the short hallway.

A few minutes later, another woman who worked there got in the studio, and stopped on Caleb's doorway to say hi too. Hanna had her office door opened so she heard her.

"Hi, doc!"

"Hey, Kate." his deep voice replied.

"So, everything ready?"

"Yeah. Another day of work is starting..."

"Well, the sooner we start, the sooner we get home. How is your wife?"

"Uh... She's fine."

"It's been a while that I don't see her around..."

"Oh, she's just a little busy, that's all."

"Right. Okay, well, say hi to her for me."

"Sure thing."

Hanna heard the whole conversation. She was really curious to meet the lucky woman who Caleb's wife was.

* * *

 **A/N: How can I not update when I got 13 reviews to the first chapter? Thirteen?! In just these few days? Oh my God, guys, you're amazing :D I'm so so happy you all liked the beginning of this new ride! I'm so excited about this :) I had hoped you'd be intrigued and it looks like you are, so... Here's the second chapter for you all ;) So? What about this Caleb? He's such a gentleman, isn't he? :P But... Any theories on Melissa, his wife? Why isn't she around? Is she actually busy like Caleb says or what? Well, next chapter will answer these questions, by the way ;) And you'll finally find out why this story's called "Glasses of Wine" haha :D Seriously, though, that next chapter will be a great —and long— chapter, you have my word ;) Oh, I also updated "I Won't Let This Plane Go Down", so check that out too ;) Once again, thank you all for the support! And review if you want, it truly makes me happy to hear whatever you guys think :) I'll try to update soon ;) Love! -Atramea.**


	3. Chapter 3

The days went by quickly. Hanna always got home by bus, and if Caleb saw her outside alone, she just told him she was waiting for Sean, who was almost there. He believed her and then left, but Hanna was actually waiting the bus.

The same thing happened on Friday. It was exactly a week since her break-up with Sean, but it was also the last day she had to go and come back from work by bus, since her car was going to be ready on Saturday, the next day. Hanna was waiting the bus and Caleb got outside, in his casual clothes, and his fresh cologne filled the air.

"Hanna, is someone coming, yeah?" he asked as usual, fixing the collar of his shirt.

"Yeah, Sean is on his way. He should be here any second. Thanks though, Caleb." she lied, nodding.

Caleb nodded and waved at her, walking to his BMW parked to the other side of the street.

When he was far, Hanna started getting a little worried. The bus was late and it was darker than the other days. She tightened her coat around her body, staring to feel a little cold, looking down the street to see if the bus was coming. There was no one in the studio anymore, and Hanna felt a shiver run through her spine when a guy with a can in his hand started walking toward her. He was wearing a black beanie, an hoodie of the same color and a pair of ripped jeans, and he looked clearly drunk.

"Hey, baby... What are you doing here alone?" he stuttered, smirking.

Hanna swallowed and took a few steps away from him, slowly. The neighborhood was totally desert except for her and that guy. She was hoping with all herself that the bus was coming.

"Hey, hey, hey... Don't run away." he continued, throwing the empty can away and grabbing her wrist.

"Let me go!" Hanna shouted, trying to escape from his grasp.

But she couldn't. He was stronger, and his grasp was too tight.

"Shhh... Don't worry, baby. I'm here with you now." he smirked, grabbing her other wrist as well and pushing her against a wall.

Hanna squeezed her eyes shut and moved her head to the side, without knowing what else to do.

"Don't touch her!" came a man's shout from somewhere near her.

Then, she heard some weird noises and suddenly she felt free from the guy's grasp. She opened her eyes to find Caleb punching the creep right on his face, hard enough to make him fall to the ground. The guy quickly stood up and ran away.

"Run, fucking bastard! Don't you dare come around here ever again!" Caleb yelled as he let the guy go.

He finally rushed to Hanna, cupping her face into his large hands.

"Hanna, hey... Are you okay?" he whispered earnestly, looking straight into her eyes.

Hanna nodded briefly, sobbing lightly, with tears into her eyes. Caleb sighed and wiped them away as Hanna finally threw herself into his arms. Caleb held her tightly, gently stroking her hair.

"Shhh, it's all over... It's all over..." he whispered.

Caleb kept holding her for a few minutes, waiting for her to calm down a little. Then, he slowly pulled away from her, lifting her chin with his idex finger.

"Hanna, where the fuck is Sean? He's always been on time! Do you see why I don't want you to be alone out here when it's dark now?" he questioned.

Hanna sniffed before replying.

"S-Sean... Sean's not coming. I was waiting the bus."

"What? Why didn't you tell me you didn't have a ride home?"

"I didn't want to bother you. You already took me home once, I didn't want to—"

"Hanna, stop. It's dangerous out here. I may be your boss at work, but I'm a person exactly like you, first. There's no problem for me to drive you home, got it? I don't want anything bad to happen to you. So you're never going to take the bus again... That's for sure." he cut her off.

"It's okay, today was the last day I had to take the bus anyway."

"Wait... The last day? You've taken the bus for the whole week?" Caleb widened his eyes.

Hanna sighed deeply.

"Yes." she admitted after an istant.

Caleb sighed as well, licking his lips and shaking his head.

"Look, I need to talk with your boyfriend. What's so important that he hasn't been able to come pick you up for the whole week?" he continued.

"No, don't talk to him. Please."

"I have to, Hanna! He needs to understand that it's not safe for you to take the bus from here at this time, and—"

"Sean and I broke up last week. You know, I didn't fail any exam, I just... I broke up with him." she interrupted him, shrugging slightly.

Caleb remained speechless for a second, then nodded shortly.

"Oh... Okay. Okay, I'm sorry then. But you still could have told me you didn't have a ride." he said.

Hanna bit her lower lip and nodded as well, lowering her head.

"Anyway... C'mon, I'll take you home." he continued, offering an hand to her.

Hanna accepted it and the pair got into his car.

* * *

The drive was completely silent. Caleb remembered the way to her house, so she didn't need to tell anything. When they arrived, though, Hanna was a little hesitant to get out. Caleb turned his head to her.

"Hey... Don't worry, okay? No one's going to touch you now. You're safe. And just for the record, I didn't kill that bastard just because he couldn't do anything before I arrived. But now it's over. And... You're never going to be out there alone again. I'm willing to become your personal driver, if that's necessary." he smiled.

Hanna gave him a small smile back.

"I didn't even thank you for what you did. I'm such an idiot... Thank you so much, Caleb. Seriously." she said.

"I don't need you to thank me, Hanna. I just did what I had to. I was getting into my car when I heard you scream. I didn't wait a second more to run back to where you were."

"Well, I want to thank you."

"It's okay. You're welcome."

Hanna stayed silent for a second before clearing her throat and then speaking again.

"Caleb... My mom's not home, she went out with her bestfriend, and... I don't want to be alone tonight, after... After what happened. So... I was just wondering if you wanted to come inside. I could cook dinner or something... As a thank you."

Caleb looked surprised, and Hanna immediately regretted what she had just said.

"Ugh, I'm sorry, I... I wasn't thinking. You have someone who's waiting for you to come back home, and... It was a stupid question, yeah. I'll just call one of my friends, that's it." she said immediately after.

Caleb laughed slightly, shaking his head.

"There's no one waiting for me to come back home, actually." he said then.

"Aren't you married?" Hanna asked, furrowing her eyebrows.

"Yes, but... My wife is not home...at the moment."

"Oh... Okay. So..."

"Hanna, I don't want you to cook me dinner after what happened. I think it'd be better if I'm going to cook for the both of us, so you just think about relaxing, okay?"

Hanna raised her eyebrows.

"Are... Are you sure?" she asked.

"Yeah. I love cooking. But if it's not a problem to you, I'd be more comfortable cooking in my own kitchen. Are you okay if we go to my place?"

"Oh... Okay, sure." she replied then.

"Great." he said, restarting the engine.

"Are you sure I'm not going to disturb?"

"Don't worry. It's okay. There's no one home, well, besides Charlie...my Golden Retriever." he smiled.

"Oh my God, I love them!"

"Well, that's a reason more to come then."

* * *

Caleb's house was huge. He had this wonderful garden outside, where there was even a large pool, and then a short walkway which took to the front door. Caleb parked his car into the garage and then walked to the front door with Hanna by his side. Suddenly, a big reddish brown dog came from the back garden of the house, probably alerted by the engine of the car, and immediately jumped on Caleb.

"Whoa, Charlie! Hey there!" he exclaimed as the dog licked his whole face, wagging its tail excitedly.

"Oh my God, he's so beautiful!" Hanna said, stroking the dog's soft fur.

"Well, looks like he likes you too." he chuckled, as Charlie started licking Hanna's face as well.

Hanna laughed and played with Charlie for a while, as Caleb opened the front door.

"Okay, bud. Go play now, alright?" he said then to his dog, kneeling down next to him.

Charlie, then, obeyed and ran away.

"C'mon, get in and have a seat." he told Hanna, closing the door behind her back and carrying away both of their coats.

Hanna took a look around. His house was really nice...at least for what she could see. Just the living room was very spacious, and well-furnished. The walls were cream and there was a wood flooring. Everyone could tell that Caleb was rich as hell. She took a seat on his red couch, as Caleb walked to another room, probably the kitchen. While he was away, Hanna looked around herself with more attention, but she didn't see any picture of his wedding or anything related to his wife. Caleb came back shortly after, carrying two glasses of red wine.

"Do you like wine?" he asked as he sat next to her and handed her one of the glasses.

"Sure... Thank you." Hanna smiled, grabbing the glass.

They bot took a sip, then Caleb looked at her again.

"Are you feeling better?" he asked.

Hanna sighed before replying.

"Yes. It was...awful, and he scared the crap out of me, but...but thank God he didn't have the time to touch me... I... I will never thank you enough for what you did, Caleb."

He looked at her and nodded, smiling slightly.

"No problem. Okay, you just...enjoy your wine, I'm gonna cook something, alright?"

"Okay." Hanna replied, smiling.

* * *

Caleb cooked an excellent dinner. They ate talking about light-hearted topics, Caleb trying not to make her think about what had happened a few hours earlier. When they were done, he showed her the rest of the house, and Hanna felt surprised by how it was huge and beautiful.

When they were in the bedroom, though, Hanna finally noticed a picture of Caleb and a woman, accuratelly placed in a frame on the drawers. They were clearly dressed as groom and bride. She approached that and looked at it. The woman looked really beautiful, with long dark hair and a tanned skin.

"Is this your wife?" Hanna asked casually.

Caleb let out a deep breath and scratched the back of his neck.

"Yeah." he said then.

"She's very beautiful."

"Yes, she is." he said softly, pursing his lips.

He looked totally uncomfortable talking about her. There was something weird in the air, and Hanna could feel it.

"What's her name?" she asked, although she already knew that.

"Melissa."

Hanna then understood that he didn't really want to talk about her, so she just replaced the frame where it was and turned back to him.

"I should probably go home now. My mom must have come back." she said.

"Oh, okay. Let's just have another glass of wine before that, yeah?" he smiled.

"That's okay."

They came back to the living room, then Caleb went to the kitchen and returned onve again with two glasses of wine. Hanna accepted one, so they sat in silence on the couch, drinking.

"So... Are you gonna fire me?" Hanna asked out of the blue, placing her empty glass on the coffee table in front of the couch.

Caleb swallowed his last sip and widened her eyes at her.

"What? Why am I supposed to fire you?" he asked as he placed his glass on the table as well.

"I got this job because Sean's dad knew you. But now... Sean and I are no longer together. So..."

"And so what? Look, Hanna... John Ackard is a very professional person and also a mature man, so he's not gonna ask me to fire you or anything just because his son and you broke up, that's for sure. And look, even if he does, I'm not gonna fire you just because someone told me to. You're doing really good at the studio, seriously, you're helping a lot. And you've always been on time, polite, nice with patients, so I wouldn't even have a single reason to kick you out. That's it."

Hanna sighed and bit her bottom lip.

"I'm sorry, by the way." Caleb murmured suddenly, after a few instants.

"For what?"

"For you and Sean. You know, you two looked like the couple that was never gonna split up. Maybe... Maybe you're gonna make up. Never say never, right?" he smiled slightly.

Hanna smiled back, but her smile was totally sad.

"In this case, well... I really don't think so. Technically, I was the one who ended things... But I had a very good reason to." she said, almost in a whisper.

Caleb looked over at her, waiting for her to say something else, if she wanted to.

"Sean cheated on me." she added then, lowering her gaze.

She heard silence from him, but then he laughed slightly. Hanna looked over at him almost incredulous of his reaction.

"Is that so funny?" she couldn't help but snap.

Caleb pursed his lips and shook his head.

"I'm sorry." he said then, looking at her.

"What does make you laugh?"

"Two things, actually. First... That I really don't get why he did what he did when he had a girl like you. It's so ridicolous that it makes me laugh."

"You mean?" Hanna furrowed her eyebrows.

Caleb smiled and shrugged.

"Well... Why did he try to find something better when he had the best?" he said.

Hanna laughed and blushed slightly at his compliment. He was so charming even when he made a simple compliment.

"What's the second thing?" she asked then, turning slightly on the couch so that she could look at him without feeling any pain at the neck.

Caleb changed a bit his expression, lowering his gaze for a moment.

"I... I can perfectly understand how you feel, Hanna." he murmured, almost ashamed.

He turned around as well and lifted his head before continuing.

"My wife cheated on me too. She and her... _boy_ , they had this plan before our wedding. They just wanted to steal me some money and then leave the country together, disappearing. Melissa and I had been together for four years before getting married around one year ago. She was always around at the studio, that's why they know her there. I don't know when she started cheating on me, but I think that stealing my money has always been her only thought. But I was in love, maybe too much that I didn't want to realize that Melissa wasn't in love with me, instead. So... I married her, and I was the happiest man of this world. But then... After a couple of months, she just disappeared. There was this guy, his name was Wren, she told me he was one of her friends from Chicago, well... He was always around. I honestly found their relationship a bit weird, but...I trusted her. But then, after the wedding, he disappeared just like her. And the bank account which Melissa and I had in common, the one we made after the wedding, was totally drained. It was then that I realized how stupid I was."

Hanna remained silent for quite a long time, not knowing what to say, before murmuring something.

"I... I'm sorry, Caleb. I didn't know..."

Caleb smiled slightly.

"Don't worry. No one knows." he shrugged.

"How long she's been gone?"

"Ten months, I think... More or less, yeah."

"Why do you keep this a secret?"

He sighed and took a moment before replying.

"There's not a real reason. I just... I'm a reserved man, and... And I don't like to let people know about my private. But I guess I also feel a little... _Ashamed_."

Hanna blinked at him. He looked really emotional.

"Why do you still keep your ring? Just to make sure no one's gonna suspect that you're no longer together?" she asked then.

Caleb shook his head slightly.

"I didn't apply for the divorce. I didn't slide off my wedding ring. I... I've only been able to put away her things and our pictures, all of them besides the one of our wedding. I'm... I'm a reserved man, but I'm also a very loyal man. I promised I would love Melissa for my whole life, whatever happens, and that's what I'm gonna do. I'm still married to her, she's my wife. I won't break my promise." he said with decision.

Hanna gave him a sad smile, which he returned.

"Well... Melissa had a wonderful man." she said sincerely.

"I guess she only loved my money, though."

"But you loved her. And... In my opinion, you're probably still waiting for her to come back, aren't you?"

Caleb sighed deeply.

"It doesn't matter anymore. No one cares about how I feel or who I love. You know, people thinks that money means happiness, but that's not true. Money means... _money_. That's it. I know that. Look at me, Hanna. I have this huge house, a private pool, an awesome car, a good job...but the only one who really loves me is my dog. I don't have friends, I don't have someone to say goodnight to, I... I'm _alone_." he replied then.

"Well... You could start a new life if you just found the strength to get over your wife. That way, you may find your happiness or someone who makes you feel truly loved. I don't want to sound tactless, but I think that she doesn't have the right to stop you from living you life. Caleb... What you said before about your promise to Melissa is really admirable, sure, but that's not fair to yourself. She has already broken the promise you two had. You didn't break it. It was her. That's why you should feel free to start over now. Maybe you should divorce, maybe you just need to turn the page..."

"It's not as easy as it sounds."

"I know."

Caleb nodded as well.

"Why did you tell me, though?" Hanna asked.

He shrugged.

"I think you can understand me. And not just because you happen to be in my same situation, but also because... I don't know, but I feel like trusting you. You're a special girl, Hanna. So... Yeah, I'm definitely not going to fire you." he replied, smiling.

Hanna smiled back.

"Thank you." she said then.

"You're welcome."

They locked eyes for a long moment before Hanna's mobile started ringing. She cleared her throat and took it from her purse, picking up.

"Hello?"

"Hanna, where are you?" Ashley asked, concerned.

"Mom, hey... I'm with doctor Rivers, he's right about to take me home."

"But it's almost midnight! You've been working for the whole night?"

"Uh... Yeah, sort of. But... I'm on my way now, don't worry."

"Fine. I'll see you later."

"Bye."

Hanna hung up and looked over at Caleb.

"I need to go home. My mom's back." she told him.

"Sure. Let's go." he nodded.

After saying goodbye to Charlie, the two hopped in his BMW and Caleb drove till Hanna's house. Once they got there, Caleb turned to her and cleared his throat.

"Thanks." he said.

"For what? I have to thank you, Caleb, not the other way around."

He shook his head.

"For the first time in a while, I didn't feel alone. Thank you for the company, and...for listening to me." he said then.

Hanna smiled.

"I was good too. And don't worry, I'm not going to tell anyone about... _that_." she replied.

"Then I owe you another thank you." he chuckled.

"However, I would appreciate if you're not gonna tell about what happened at the bus stop as well. My mom always gets to know anything, I don't want her to worry."

He nodded slowly.

"Okay... But, once again, you will never have to take the bus from there at that time again. If you don't have any other way to go back home, you just tell me. Deal?" he added.

"Deal." she smiled.

"Alright." Caleb smiled as well.

"Well, this is me, so... I'll see you next week."

"Of course."

Hanna was about to get out of the car when she turned to Caleb again and reached out to hug him. He remained still for a moment, probably surprised by her gesture, but then he sneaked an arm around her back and pulled her closer, returning the hug. Hanna enjoyed for a few seconds the warmth of his arms and the deep scent of his cologne before pulling away slowly.

"You're a really nice person, Caleb. And you deserve your happiness." she said then.

Caleb smiled.

"You too, Hanna." he said then.

"Okay, so... I'll see you next week, but... If you ever need someone to talk to or if you just feel alone, well, you can always give me a ring." she blurted out.

Caleb looked at her attentively, then nodded.

"I'll keep it in mind." he said.

"Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Hanna."

She gave him one last small smile before hopping out of his car for good.

Hanna told her mom some lame excuse not to make her know that she had been at Caleb's for the whole evening. They hadn't done anything bad, and between them there was nothing, but she knew her mom wouldn't have been happy if she had known. After all, despite Caleb being a really nice and kind man, he still was her boss, and he was nine years older than her and, most of all, he was married. Yeah, at least technically.

She went to bed shortly after, thinking about him. He had saved her from that perv in front of the studio, he had gladly taken her to his house and cooked her dinner, he had listened to her when she had opened up with him about Sean and he had opened up with her about something no one knew about. She felt they had a strong chemistry. They were similar in some ways, and Hanna had actually enjoyed their quiet evening together.

She closed her eyes rather happy despite her tough day.

* * *

 **A/N: Guysss! Here's your long intense chapter :) You left 14 reviews to the second chapter — :D — so I HAD TO update ;) sooo... Finally the truth about Caleb's marriage! What do you guys think about it? One of the guests guessed correctly, she cheated on Caleb, yeah... And then she ran away with his money and another money :/ (sorry for making Wren the bad guy, lol) ...Kind of a bitch, right? Poor baby :( So, just to clarify, this is NOT the only "glasses of wine" moment of the story ;) There are gonna be more and more glasses, haha :P Also, what do you guys think about Caleb coming to Hanna's rescue? Maybe a little cliché, yeah, but I wanted to portray Caleb like the sweetest guy he is, in this story too, so... I had to make him the savior of the situation :) But, seriously, I'm impressed by the love you all are showing for this story. I'm beyond happy to see that you're so intrigued about this new project :D Thank you so so so much, it means a lot. Now you just have to tell me if you enjoyed this chapter as well – I hope so :) Throughout the next chapters you'll see the development of things between Hanna and Caleb obviously ;) So... That's all for now. Keep up your amazing support, you're the best ;) Until next time! Love! xx -Atramea.**


	4. Chapter 4

Another Monday came.

Hanna was actually a little disappointed because Caleb hadn't called her or anything during the weekend. She didn't know why she felt disappointed since she and Caleb weren't _a thing_ , at all, but she knew she felt like that. She had spent a nice Saturday evening in a pub with her friends from college, Spencer, Aria and Emily, and when they had asked how she was feeling about her break-up with Sean she had honestly replied she was kind of fine now. And that was true, she was feeling a lot better. Then, on Sunday, she had slept in and then studied a bit for her exams, staying home with her mom for the whole day.

And now, on Monday, after going to college in the morning, she was on her way to work. She went with her car, finally fixed, and she entered the studio. Before getting into her office, she stopped at the door of Caleb's studio, slightly opened. She was about to knock to say hi when she caught a glimpse of Caleb shirtless. He was taking his shirt off to put his work clothes on. Hanna found herself staring at his bare torso, perfectly defined. His abs were surprisingly toned for a man who worked as a simple dentist, and his skin was particularly tanned. When he began unzipping his jeans, Hanna felt her cheeks redden and understood it was enough. She quickly walked to her studio and decided to say hi later.

God, she couldn't think about Caleb _that_ way. He was her boss. He was over thirty years old. He was _married_. On the other hand, he was handsome —to her mind, it also came up the word _sexy_ after seeing him half-naked a few minutes earlier— kind, nice, charming, and he _actually_ was _not_ still into a relationship.

Hanna just sighed and opened the agenda. It was time to work... _just_ work.

* * *

Caleb came into Hanna's office a few hours later, bringing her a coffee.

"Hi, Hanna." he said, placing the coffee on her desk.

Hanna lifted her head from the papers she was working on and smiled slightly.

"Oh, hi. Thank you." she replied.

Caleb nodded and took a seat.

"You didn't stop to say hi today." he furrowed his eyebrows.

Hanna lifted her eyebrows and nodded.

"Oh, yeah... Sorry, I saw your door closed, so I thought to come back later and then... I guess I just forgot. There's a lot of planning to do here, I was too focused, probably." she replied quickly.

"Right. I know, that's a lot of work for you to do today, I'm sorry..."

"No problem. Coffee's gonna help me." she smiled, before taking a sip.

"So, besides work... Everything okay?"

Hanna smiled again and nodded, placing her coffee back on the desk.

"Yeah, thanks for asking." she said then.

Caleb nodded as well, smiling slightly.

"What about you?" Hanna blurted out.

He raised his eyebrows and let out a small laugh.

"I'm fine, Hanna. Don't worry about me." he added.

Hanna instinctively glanced at his hands. He didn't have his work rubber gloves on at that moment, and at his left hand there was his gold wedding ring, as usual.

"You know, I was wondering... Yeah, during last weekend I thought about what you told me on Friday night, and... You said you're alone. What about your family? Like, your mom and dad... Do they live far from here?" she asked then.

"I'm orphan. My parents died when I was in high school." he shrugged.

"Oh, Caleb, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to—"

"It's okay, Hanna." he cut her off, giving her a small smile.

She nodded and smiled back slightly.

"However, I'm supposed to meet a patient in five minutes. I just wanted to make sure you were fine. If you need something, knock on my door." he continued, standing up from his seat.

Hanna nodded quickly and he smiled at her before getting out of the office.

* * *

It was around half past seven when Caleb came back into Hanna's office. She was still immersed in work to do.

"Hey... How is it going?" he asked.

"Uhm, I think I'm gonna stay here for a couple of hours more. I need to finish the planning for next week, because that's still completely messy right now." she sighed, momentarily roaming an hand through her hair.

"Oh, c'mon... Go home now. You've already done more than enough for today, don't worry."

"No, Caleb. I need to finish or tomorrow I'm gonna go crazy with this shit."

Caleb sighed.

"Everyone's gone home. I guess it's time for us to go too." he told her.

"Caleb, you can go home. I'm gonna lock here when I'm done. They gave me the car back, so you can relax, I won't take the bus. But I need a couple of hours more. So go home, I'll be fine."

Caleb grinned.

"You won't change your mind, will you?" he asked.

Hanna shook her head, focusing herself back on the agenda.

"And I was supposed to fire you, huh? You work more than anyone else in here!" he continued, laughing slightly.

Hanna laughed slightly too at that.

"But... You know what? Since I'm the boss, I take decisions for this studio. So, if you really want to keep working on this, you will have to do that with my help." he continued.

Hanna lifted her gaze from the agenda and raised her eyebrows.

"Caleb, you don't have to do that. I can handle it." she said.

"Oh, I perfectly know that you can. But I _want_ to help you, okay?"

Hanna smiled.

"Okay." she breathed out then.

After working for around an hour, they noticed they needed a certificate that happened to be at Caleb's. He suggested they could fix those last things the next day, but Hanna was determined to finish that night, so she just asked him to go home and then bring it back to her. But Caleb had another idea.

"Okay, you know what? It's half past eight and we're both hungry. It's late and we need to have dinner. You want to finish the planning tonight, that's okay, but we're gonna take a dinner break. And since we need something that is in my house, well, just come home with me and let's have dinner there. Then, I swear we're gonna finish this. Alright?"

Hanna leaned back in her chair and sighed.

"No, Caleb. I can't." she said.

Caleb furrowed his eyebrows.

"And why is that?" he asked.

"I've been bothering you enough lately. I can't have dinner at your place again when I was there just last Friday."

He laughed loudly and stood up.

"Hanna, look... If you don't want to come, that's okay. But if you really think that you're bothering me and that's the only reason why you don't feel like coming, well, let me just tell you that you're wrong. You're not bothering me, absolutely. I told you, it's nice to have someone around, especially for a lonely person like me. And...especially if that's someone...like you. So, c'mon, grab your things while I'm going to get changed. I'll wait for you outside." he said.

He didn't give her time to reply that he had gotten out of the office to go into the studio to get changed. Hanna stayed still for a moment, wondering what he exactly meant for _'someone like you'_. She felt a shiver ran through her spine as she realized she actually wanted to have dinner with him.

 _What the hell was happening to her?_

She texted her mom telling her she was going to have dinner with Emily —because she didn't want her mom to know she was going to spend the evening with her married older boss, _again_ — and collected her things, then got out of the office just when Caleb got out of the studio. They went to their respective cars and drove until his place.

* * *

Once again Charlie was very happy to see Hanna, and once again Caleb cooked a delicious dinner, and once again they talked about everything and nothing, starting from funny episodes at the studio and coming to what Charlie liked eating. They laughed and finished their dinner before going back to their planning, finding the certificate and fixing the last things. They used just twenty minutes and the work was done. Like last Friday, they ended up sitting on the couch with two glasses of wine, relaxing a little.

"So... How's college going?" Caleb asked, swallowing a little of his wine.

"Pretty good. If I'm lucky, next year I'm graduating."

"That's great. You know, I would have liked to study Commerce too. I think it gives you a lot of opportunities for the future."

"Why did you study Dentistry, then?"

He shrugged slightly.

"I liked the idea of having a lot of money, I guess." he chuckled then.

Hanna laughed and took another sip of wine from her glass.

"Well, despite everything you told me about having money but being alone, your house is awesome, that's for sure. You know, when I will have my own house with my own family, I absolutely want a pool outside too." she stated then, nodding toward the window where his pool could be seen from.

"Yeah? Well, you'll be susprised to know that I never tried it. No one ever did, actually. It's still... _virgin_."

"Seriously?" Hanna widened her eyes.

"Yeah. Neither Charlie did, he's scared of water. And when Melissa and I moved in here it was fall, so it was too cold to jump in the pool. After that, I just didn't. I don't even know why."

"That's a pity. But I see you take care of it anyway..."

"Of course I do. After all, this house is the only thing I have. I care about it, so I want to keep it tidy and clean everywhere...pool included, obviously."

"It makes sense." Hanna commented.

"But now we're in May, and it's warm despite it's evening, so... You can try it." Caleb smirked.

Hanna laughed loudly.

"Thanks but that's not gonna happen!" she added, placing her empty glass on the coffee table.

"Oh, c'mon. You worked really hard today. You deserve to relax, and I think that jumping in that pool and swimming a little will help your nerves."

"I've already relaxed with your excellent wine. And with your dinner, obviously. I'm not gonna invade your pool too." she laughed.

"Let me pound away at that. This house is huge, you saw it, that's why I have a guest room where there is a closet which contains some clean towels, bathing suits and stuff never used. Something's telling me that you're dying to jump in that pool. And you're welcome. Then, if you want, you can also take a shower. There isn't any problem." he smiled, placing his glass on the coffee table too.

Hanna stayed silent, awkwardly. She didn't really think it was the case. Then, she blushed slightly thinking back at his shirtless body. Was he gonna jump in with her?

"If I'm gonna jump in... You are too?" she asked then.

Caleb grinned.

"No, of course not. Women need their space, right? The pool will be all yours. Consider it my way to thank you for your excellent work of these last months. And, yeah, you'll be my... _guinea pig_ for the pool." he said then.

"Wow... Classy."

Caleb laughed and stood up before offering an hand to her.

"C'mon. I give Charlie his dinner while you go to the guest room to get changed. You remember where it is, right?" he asked.

Hanna looked at him. Maybe it was the wine, or maybe it was the someway exciting feeling at the thought of swimming in his boss' huge and wonderful pool, but she just accepted it and smiled at him.

"I remember." she stated before letting go of his hand and walking upstairs.

* * *

Hanna came back downstairs after a while. She had taken a nice green bikini from the closet of the guest room, and now she was wearing it underneath a towel wrapped around her body. Caleb wasn't there, he probably was in the back garden with Charlie. Hanna knew he didn't have bad intentions. She knew he wasn't offering his pool just to see her only clad by a bikini. He had always been a gentleman and she trusted him. And she had also started enjoying spending so much time with him.

She wasn't seeing him as just her boss anymore. She didn't know how _exactly_ she was seeing him, but she just felt comfortable around him. They weren't working anymore, they were just hanging out in his house as...friends, or _something_ like that. After all, they had known each other for two months. It's not like they were strangers. And the one knew about the other more than anyone else did. So, after being a little hesitant at first, she had decided there wasn't gonna be anything bad if she had actually took a swim in his pool.

She got outside the house and the warm air of May hit her bare shoulders, left exposed by the towel. She approached the pool slowly, enjoying the view of the large garden, until she reached the edge of the pool. It was then that she let the towel fall to the ground and jumped in.

The water was perfect. Not too cold, not too hot. It felt okay. Hanna came back to the surface and roamed an hand through her wet locks, catching her breath. Then, she started swimming, enjoying the feeling of the water caressing her bare skin. She still couldn't see Caleb, but she assumed he was still giving Charlie his food. So she stayed in the pool, relaxing her nerves. Caleb was right, the feeling on being in that pool really helped her calm down.

After a good fifteen minutes, she got out of the pool, seeing Caleb walking to her, smiling slightly. She smiled back and before she could pick the towel from the ground, he had already bent down.

"Enjoyed?" he asked, unfolding the towel for her.

"Yes, it was really good." she replied.

Then, she turned around to let Caleb wrap the towel around her shoulders. He did so, wrapping it carefully around her wet body without staring at her perfect silhouette like a creep or taking advantage of the situation to touch her in any bothering way. She turned around again and he just kept his right hand lightly pressed against her small back, covered by the towel, nodding toward the front door.

"Let's go inside, I don't want you to get cold." he told her.

Hanna smiled at him and he led her inside. Then, he closed the front door behind their backs and crossed his arms over his chest.

"So is everything fine with my pool, yeah?" he asked.

"I'm positive. Your guinea pig did what she had to." Hanna joked.

Caleb laughed.

"Well, she sure was a gorgeous guinea pig." he added, raising his eyebrows.

Hanna bit her lip, half-smiling.

"I should have dragged you in the pool too, though." she said then.

"Oh, yeah?"

"Yeah... Definitely."

"I thought women needed their space and privacy."

"Well, most of the times it's like that. But not always."

Caleb smiled and nodded.

"Okay, then... Next time, I'll jump in too." he added.

"Next time?" Hanna raised her eyebrows, tightening the towel around herself.

"Yeah... Next time you come here." he stated quietly.

She smiled again, then she remembered she was only wrapped in a towel with a bikini underneath.

"Uhm... Do you mind if I take a shower? I'll use the bathroom for the guests, of course." she asked then.

Caleb chuckled.

"You can use whatever bathroom, shower or bathtub, Hanna. Help yourself." he told her then.

Hanna smiled slightly and excused herself, going upstairs to take a quick shower.

* * *

It was weird taking a shower at Caleb's. Her boss, nine years older than her. The charming gentleman all smiles on the outside, while he was sad and alone on the inside. It felt weird, but for the nth time Hanna had to repeat herself that she wasn't doing anything bad or forbidden. First of all, it's not like they were fooling around, plus if they actually were, there wouldn't be anything _too_ bad about that. Because yes, he was still married, but he and his wife weren't together anymore. But why the hell was she thinking about the possibility of sleeping with Caleb? They were just keeping each other company, nothing else... _right_?

There was even a Jacuzzi, but Hanna had chosen the normal shower. She wasn't used to all of that expensive stuff. She let the water jet hit herself straight to the face, shaking all those thoughts off her mind. As soon as she was gonna finish her shower and put her clothes back on, she needed to go home.

She came back downstairs after her shower, dressed with her clothes and with her hair still a little damp. Caleb was on the couch, watching a movie with Charlie half-sprawled on his lap, while lazily stroking his fur.

"Hey, everything okay?" he asked, lifting his gaze from the TV to her eyes.

Hanna quickly smoothed her dress and smiled at him.

"Yeah, yeah... T-Thank you so much, Caleb." she stammered.

 _Why the hell was she stammering?_

"Anytime. Hey, that's just started. Wanna join me and Charlie?" he said then, nodding toward the screen.

"No, thanks. It's getting late, I have to go home."

"Oh, are you sure?" Caleb sounded almost disappointed.

"Yes, I already did enough in here for one day."

He laughed slightly and turned the TV off, patting Charlie's back to make him jump off him, then he finally got up and came closer to Hanna.

"I want you to know that you're not disturbing in here. At all. I'm gonna tell you until you get it." he smiled.

"I got it, and I'm glad about that, but... We ate, finished our work, drank wine, got relaxed and everything, so... I think it's time for me to go now." she murmured, nodding.

Caleb nodded as well.

"Okay. Let me just walk you to your car." he stated then.

Hanna nodded and got on her knees for a moment to say Charlie goodbye. The dog licked her face and she giggled loudly before standing up and following Caleb until her car.

"So... Thanks again for everything." she told him, opening the driver door.

"You're welcome, Hanna. I told you, it's nice to have someone other than Charlie around."

They both chuckled at that.

"Can I just ask you something?" she asked.

"Sure." he nodded.

"Before coming here, when we were still in my office, you said that it's nice to have someone around, especially if this someone is _like me_. Well... What did you mean with that?"

He raised his eyebrows and slightly opened his mouth to reply, but he didn't say anything eventually. He just made this awkward smile and looked down at his feet. Hanna waited for him to say something, even though she knew he wasn't going to. After an awkward minute of silence, he leaned in and kissed her cheek, lingering his lips on that spot for a few seconds before pulling away.

"Goodnight, Hanna. See you tomorrow." he whispered before turning around and walking to his front door.

After the shiver that the kiss had caused her traveled through her whole spine, Hanna blinked a couple of times and then hopped into her car, driving away.

* * *

 **A/N: Hello people! I'm so sorry this chapter took so long to be published, it's just that I barely have time to breathe lately. Anyway, here it is ;) So, I read all of your amazing and lovely reviews and it makes me so much happy knowing you're enjoying the story :D cherryschnapps, you're totally right, I haven't let you know anything about Caleb's feelings but I wanted it to be like that. For now, you just see Hanna's view of things, not knowing the way Caleb sees them instead, but there's gonna be a point in the story where he finally "breaks through" and from then you'll find out definitely more about his thoughts and everything. If I'm not wrong, it should be in just two or maybe three chapters, so we're not too far ;) What about this chapter? It was full of Haleb moments, so... I hope y'all liked it! Don't forget to let me know! :) There was even their "second round" of glasses of wine ;) –and no, it won't be their last :P– By the way Tuesday's premiere was AMAZING! Haleb just melted my heart :') They're the cutest, period :D Well, I guess that's all... I'll be waiting for your opinions :) Have a nice day everyone! Love xx -Atramea.**


	5. Chapter 5

"Oh, look over there. That's him!" Aria whispered to her three friends.

Hanna, Aria, Emily and Spencer were sitting at their usual spot for their lunch break, at college. Aria had spoken for the whole time about this new guy who had started texting with, and now he had appeared through the college guys crowd.

"Not bad, Aria." Spencer commented, looking at the guy and biting her apple.

"I guess there's no need for me to express my opinion, right?" Emily said, referring to the fact she was lesbian.

"Don't bother yourself, Em. Thanks anyway. Hanna? What do you think?" Aria asked.

"Uhm, what?" Hanna lifted her head.

"Jeez, Han... Did you forget your head home today?" Spencer exclaimed.

"Sorry, I just... I was lost in thought." Hanna replied, shaking her head slightly.

"Is it still because of Sean?" Emily asked quietly, not knowing whether it was still a delicate topic or not.

"No, don't worry. He's a jerk, I don't see why I'm still supposed to cry over him after what happened. I'm fine, really." Hanna replied.

"Well, then... Tell us what's running through your mind today. I talked enough, it's your turn now." Aria grinned.

Hanna sighed and smiled up at her.

"Nothing. I'm fine." she added.

"Hanna, you can't fool us, you know that, right? Even when we were in class, you looked a thousand miles far away from here. So, what's up?" Spencer insisted.

Hanna sighed once again, roaming an hand through her hair.

"I... I think I like someone." she confessed, biting her lip.

"That's great news!" Aria laughed.

"Who is it? Do we know him?" Emily asked excitedly.

Hanna stayed silent.

"C'mon, Han... We won't judge you, I promise." Aria smiled at her.

"I wouldn't be so sure about that." Hanna sighed.

All her three friends furrowed their eyebrows at that.

"It isn't professor Brenson, is it?" Emily asked almost concerned.

Hanna let out a little chuckle at that and Emily looked almost relieved.

"Jeez, Em... Absolutely not." Hanna precised.

"So? Who is it?" Aria asked again.

Hanna took a deep breath.

"It's... Caleb." she whispered.

Aria, Emily and Spencer remained fuzzy for a moment.

"Okay, and who's Caleb?" Aria furrowed an eyebrow.

Hanna was about to say something but then Spencer seemed to realize.

"Wait... Caleb... Caleb as in Caleb Rivers? Doctor Rivers, the dentist? _Your boss_?" she asked lowering her voice and widening her eyes.

At that, Aria and Emily widened their eyes too. Hanna just nodded awkwardly, pursing her lips.

"Well, he sure is fucking hot." Aria commented then, trying to lighten up the conversation.

"Fucking hot? He's fucking _married_!" Spencer snapped at her friend.

Hanna rolled her eyes. She couldn't tell her friends that yes, he was married, but that there was more to the story. She couldn't because she had promised Caleb she wouldn't tell anyone, and she wanted to keep her promise.

"Uh... That's right too." Aria replied, raising her eyebrows.

"Hanna, for God's sake, isn't he like thirty-five years old?" Emily asked.

"Thirty-two, Em. Thirty-two." Hanna replied, rolling her eyes again.

"Okay, wait a minute... Why did you call him just 'Caleb'? Are you two _intimate_?" Spencer asked shocked.

Hanna let out a long sigh.

"I don't know what you exactly mean by 'intimate', Spence, so I'm gonna be clear. We didn't do anything. We just had dinner together at his place...twice, and then a couple of glasses of wine on his couch. That's it, nothing else." she told them then, eventually shrugging.

"Was his wife with you two there too?" Aria demanded.

"She's not in town right now. So... No, she wasn't." Hanna replied quicky.

"Okay, Han... I know I said we weren't going to judge you, but... Despite his charm and the fact that he's _very_ good-looking, well... He's still a thirty-two years old married man, who also happens to be your boss. Couldn't you choose someone else to get over Sean?" Aria whispered.

Hanna stayed silent for a good twenty seconds before replying.

"Look, this is not a whim... I'm not looking for a way to get over Sean. And... I know that he's married and everything, but it's not like I chose to feel attracted by him. It just happened. Plus, it's not just physical. I got to know him better throughout these last days, and he's a wonderful person. But once again, I didn't sleep or anything with him. So please, you guys stop looking at me like I'm a whore."

"Sorry, Han... But... Are you planning on seeing him again? Outside work, I mean." Spencer asked.

"I... I don't know." Hanna blurted out.

"Hanna, let me tell you that this isn't going to bring you anything good. You should stop before it's too late to get out of that. You're stepping in between...a _marriage_. That's something _too_ big. Shit, Sean cheated on you, your dad cheated on your mom... You should know what it's like. If you don't stop right now, you're most likely gonna cause an earthquake in that man's life, and... And you're gonna hurt a woman the exactly same way your mom and you were hurt." Aria told her.

Hanna sighed and shook her head.

"Right, of course. I gotta go." she mumbled then, before standing up and storming away.

She knew it was gonna be a bad idea telling her friends about how she felt about Caleb, but she wanted to anyway. Because she didn't know what exactly was growing into her toward him, but she knew something was. So she just thought that talking about that was gonna help her. But when she had seen her friends' reaction, she realized that, despite the truth about his marriage, Caleb was _still_ a married man. And she couldn't keep their thing going, whatever it was. Because it felt dirty, unfair, awfully _wrong_.

* * *

After college, she decided to text him. But only to tell him that she wasn't gonna come to work that day. Maybe it was a stupid act, but she didn't feel like seeing him that day. It would be her first day off in two months, almost two and an half, so she knew it wasn't going to be a problem. She told her mom she had an awful headache, then she grabbed her mobile and typed.

 _Not feeling well. I don't think I can come to work. Can I take the day off please? -Hanna_

She sent it to Caleb as soon as she finished typing, not wanting to read a second time and feel like something needed to get changed. She went to her room and lied on her bed. That's when her mobile beeped on the mattress.

 _Sure, no problem. Stay home and get some rest. I just hope that's not my fault since I made you jump in the pool last night ;)_

She smiled at his last words. She couldn't help it. And she knew she didn't have to reply, there was no need to, but instead she did.

 _I'm sure that's not your fault :) Thanks btw_

She sighed and placed her mobile on the nightstand. She could have avoided him, yes, but for how long if she couldn't even ignore his texts? As if it wasn't enough, her mobile beeped again, and it was him, _again_.

 _You're welcome... Hope you feel better soon. See ya tomorrow - hopefully. But take your time to recover, no worries ;)_

And now she felt bad at the thought of lying to him not to see him. She felt stupid as hell.

 _I will. Thank u :)_

That's what she managed to type before throwing her mobile back on the nightstand and closing her eyes to get some extra sleep.

* * *

Hanna didn't go to work on Tuesday, and on Wednesday and Thursday the studio stayed closed due to some kind of electric problem. So, she didn't see or hear from Caleb for three days, and then she came back to work on Friday.

She had thought a lot about what her friends had told her about the attraction she felt for him, and she seemed to realize that it was someway wrong. She knew she couldn't avoid him since he was her boss, but she was trying her best not to get too involved with him.

She quickly made her way to her office without stopping by Caleb's door, and immediately made herself as busy as possible. However, Caleb came shortly after to bring her coffee as he often did, and Hanna had to look up at him and see his perfect smile.

"Hanna, are you feeling better?" he began, handing her the coffee.

Hanna took a deep breath and managed to smile back.

"Yeah. Thanks, doctor." she replied.

Caleb furrowed an eyebrow.

"'Doctor'? I thought we got over that." he grinned.

"Sorry." she shook her head awkwardly before taking a sip from her coffee.

"Don't worry. I see you're...very busy, right?" he said, nodding toward her messy desk.

"Uhm, yeah."

"Well, then... I'm not gonna disturb you. I'll see you later, okay?"

"Sure." she nodded quickly.

Caleb nodded as well and turned on his heels, walking back to his studio. Hanna leaned back in her chair and snorted loudly.

 _Why did she have to work for such a sexy gentleman?_

At the end of the work day, then, she sneaked out of her office and then of the studio before Caleb. She didn't want to bump into him again. Yeah, she was definitely avoiding him. But as soon as she reached her car, Caleb exited the studio and saw her, waving at her.

"Fuck." she muttered under her breath as he approached her.

"Hey... Are you in a hurry?" he asked when he got in front of her, raising his eyebrows.

Hanna sighed and then smiled.

"Kind of. I'm sorry I didn't wait for you." she told him.

"No problem. But... Hanna, did I do something wrong, maybe? I feel like you're almost... _avoiding_ me." he asked, furrowing his eyebrows.

Hanna blinked quickly.

"Uhm... No, nothing, absolutely. Everything's fine, Caleb." she replied.

Caleb nodded slowly before continuing.

"Okay. You know, I was hoping you could come to my place for a glass of wine, but I see you can't, so... I'll just see you next week."

Hanna opened her mouth to say something but nothing came out, so she just watched Caleb walking to his BMW, without turning around to look at her.

Only God knew how badly she would have wanted to go to his place for that glass of wine. But she couldn't... It would have been wrong.

* * *

 **A/N: Hey guys! So, since I'm in a good mood because in last night's episode Haleb kissed —and they hadn't kissed since December—, and they also had this extremely cute scene on that air mattress which just became one of my favorites ever, AND you all left me over FIFTY freaking reviews to only four chapters, well... I decided to update :D Now I know that there weren't many Haleb scenes in this chapter, and I know that things don't seem to go well between the two right now, but... I promise you will TOTALLY love the next chapter ;) I needed to make Hanna talk with her friends about Caleb. Oh, a little reminder: Spencer and Melissa are NOT sisters in this story. So, Spencer isn't Caleb's sister-in-law or anything xD and she doesn't even know Melissa personally, okay? She —and all the other girls— knows Caleb is married just because everyone in town knows doctor Rivers ;) And since they're seeing Hanna's attraction toward Caleb a bad thing not just because of the fact he's married but also because of his age, I decided to make Aria "date" Andrew instead of Ezra —I really don't think Andrew is Charles by the way u.u—. As usual, a huge thank you to each one of you for your incredible support. It truly means a lot to me :) Well, now it's 3 am here in Italy so I think I'd better go to sleep :P let me know what you think of the chapter as usual, okay? :) I'll try my best to update soon, even if I have some exams on my way :(:( Have a nice day everyone! I'm going to sleep on my air mattress cuddling with my Caleb :D Love! xx -Atramea.**


	6. Chapter 6

"So, Andrew, you're good in Maths? Well, then you could be a savior for all of us!" Emily laughed.

It was Saturday night, and Hanna and her friends were in a pub talking to Andrew, the guy who Aria was seeing. She was there as well, of course.

"Seriously, if you need help for some exam... I'm here." he smiled.

"Ugh, I'm so happy I didn't attend any college." Toby Cavanaugh, Spencer's boyfriend, muttered taking a sip from his glass of beer.

"Shut up! You should have!" Spencer told him, nudging him slightly.

Toby rolled his eyes.

"Don't listen to her, Toby, you did the right thing." Hanna commented.

"Wow, Hanna, you can speak! I was almost getting worried!" Spencer noted.

"Yeah, you haven't been very talkative lately... And that's weird of you." Emily added.

"You guys, I'm just stressed. Do I have to remind you that I also have a job beside college?" Hanna snapped.

Spencer rolled her eyes and then went to dance with Toby. Aria and Andrew started making out shortly after, and Emily didn't use too long to find a girl through the crowd too.

Every Saturday ended up that way by now. Once Hanna had Sean, but now she had no one. She was feeling very alone. She sighed and looked around the pub. Everyone looked like was having a lot of fun. But she wasn't. Her mind automatically went to Caleb. She wondered what his Saturdays were like.

"Han?" she heard a voice behind her.

It was Spencer.

"Yeah?" Hanna replied.

"Toby and I are going. It's kind of late... But I see Em and Aria are rather busy."

Hanna raised her eyebrows.

"Yeah, I see that too. I think I'm going with you." she commented then, standing up from her chair.

She made her way out of the pub with Spencer and Toby. The couple hopped into Toby's truck, and she got into her car.

She started the engine and glanced at the digital watch of the car. Ten past midnight. She snorted, she didn't really want to go home. Her mom was probably already asleep by now, so if she was really going home, she would just go to bed and maybe watch a lame movie before falling asleep. Suddenly, she stopped the car and leaned back into her seat. She closed her eyes for a moment and realized that she didn't want to go home because actually she wanted to go somewhere else.

* * *

Hanna pulled in _his_ driveway and parked her car quickly. Twenty past midnight... She was insane. She glanced at her reflection in the rear-view mirror and fixed her hair, then took a deep breath and got out of the car. Immediately, Charlie ran to her and almost jumped on her, clearly happy.

"Hey, Charlie! How are you doing, buddy?" she smiled down at the dog, stroking his fur.

Then, Charlie ran away and Hanna went to the front door and was about to knock when Caleb opened the door, probably alerted that someone was coming by Charlie's barking. He looked surprised to see her. He slightly widened his eyes but he also smiled like he always did when he saw her.

"What about a glass of wine?" Hanna murmured, smiling up at him.

He chuckled and made her some room to get in. He had a simple shirt and a pair of sweats on, and Hanna wondered if he was sleeping.

"Have a seat." he smiled.

"Did I wake you up?" she asked as he closed the front door.

"No. I was just reading, actually."

Hanna sat on the couch and looked over at the coffee table in front of it, where a book was placed. It was by Ken Follett.

"Nice. So you spend your Saturday nights reading?" Hanna asked.

He shrugged slightly.

"Pretty much. But I thought that college girls like you had something better to do on Saturday nights... So, Hanna, what does bring you here?" he added.

Hanna took a deep breath.

"I'm... I'm not sure." she mumbled, lowering her gaze.

Caleb looked at her for a few seconds before going to the kitchen to pour their glasses of wine. He returned shortly after, sitting on the couch next to Hanna and handing her one of the two glasses.

"Thanks." she whispered.

"You're welcome. Have you eaten?"

"Yeah, don't worry."

Hanna quickly finished all of her wine, and Caleb grinned.

"Whoa... I think it will be easy if I bring here the whole bottle." he added.

Hanna laughed slightly and watched him walking to the kitchen again and then coming back with the bottle of wine. He sat back on the couch and poured her another glass. She accepted it and took another small sip along with him.

"You were right." Hanna murmured then.

"About what?" Caleb asked, placing his glass on the coffee table.

She sighed before replying.

"I was avoiding you."

Caleb nodded slowly and turned on the couch so that he could look at her better. He rested his head on the palm of his own open hand and pursed his lips.

"Why were you?" he asked.

Hanna sighed again and placed her glass on the coffee table too. She turned on the couch as well and looked into Caleb's eyes.

"Because... Because you're my boss." she muttered.

Caleb laughed slightly and took his glass again, finishing his wine. Then, he poured himself another glass and added some other wine to Hanna's one too. He handed her glass again and came back to his previous position.

"You know, I don't think that's a good reason. I guess there's more to the story that you're not telling me." he said before swallowing a sip.

Hanna finished her second glass of wine and shrugged, placing it again on the coffee table and leaning back into the couch.

"Also because you're thirty-two, and most of all, because you're married." she added.

Caleb furrowed his eyebrows and took another sip of wine.

"So... I'm your boss, I'm thirty-two, I'm married...and you avoid me because of that. I don't think it makes much sense, Hanna." he said, smiling slightly.

Hanna snorted rather loudly.

"Look, I know you got it." she added.

His smile grew a little more. She noticed it and bit her lip, then leaned toward the table to pour herself another glass, but Caleb gently grabbed her wrist.

"Hey, easy there. It would be the third already, you're gonna end up drunk... Slow down, okay?" he smirked, placing his own glass on the table.

Hanna sighed and they both leaned back in the couch. They looked at each other and stayed both silent for a long time before Hanna spoke again, once found the guts.

"I think I like you, that's why I was avoiding you, because it feels wrong since you're my boss, you're thirty-two and you're married, yeah, at least... _technically_. That's it."

Caleb pursed his lips, without breaking eye-contact with her.

"Do you think I'm old?" he asked.

Hanna rolled her eyes.

"It's all you have to say?" she snapped.

He grinned.

"You know, we could have used a little time in the pool if it wasn't so cold tonight." he said after a few seconds of silence.

"This time you would have jumped in?" she asked.

"Well... I guess you would have dragged me in, right?" he smiled.

She chuckled.

"Right." she murmured then.

Caleb took a deep breath and became suddenly serious.

"Listen, Hanna... I thought a lot about what you told me last week, about...about my wife. And I think you're right. I think that our promise is broken, and she's the one who broke it. You made me open my eyes... I have no reason not to try to go on even if she left me. I'm loyal, but I need people to be loyal to me as well. And Melissa wasn't." he said.

She just gave him a small nod.

"I should have done this so long ago." he murmured while sliding his wedding ring off his finger.

He placed it on the coffee table and leaned back in the couch, turning back to Hanna. She was really surprised by what she had just seen.

"I-I don't know what to say, Caleb." she stuttered.

"There's no need for you to say anything. It was just what I feel like doing and, well, also what I had to do. But now... I would like you to do what you feel like doing too. Without thinking about me like your thirty-two years old boss still _technically_ married who needs to be avoided. I need to know if you can see me just as Caleb. The person who likes drinking wine, reading, and playing with his dog. Not the dentist. That's the way everyone sees me. But I think you're different, Hanna. You know me better than anyone probably does, even if that can sound weird. I know you can look over that, especially if you really think you like me. So... Am I asking for too much?"

Hanna felt her heart start racing and swallowed, but managed to shook her head. Caleb, though, saw her awkwardness and smiled softly. Her heart was about to explode when he came closer and gently wrapped his arms around her back, kissing her temple. Shyly, she put her arms around his back too and held him as well. She closed her eyes and enjoyed the warmth of his body along with the smell of his cologne which she had always liked so much.

"Better?" he whispered through her hair.

"Definitely." she whispered back with a little smile.

Caleb laughed slightly and kissed her temple again.

"I'm glad you came." he told her softly.

Her smile grew even more at that. He slowly ran his large hands up and down her back, causing her goosebumps. For a moment, Hanna really forgot all of her restrains about him. Then, Caleb pulled back slightly, kissing her cheek once, twice and then again and again so that Hanna lost count.

"Do you think you can try to let yourself go?" he whispered then.

 _There it was. Now or never._

Hanna slightly titled her head to the side and suddenly Caleb's face was right in front of hers, closer than ever. He didn't make a move, though. He seemed like he was waiting for her, like he wanted her to be sure she wanted to do it. His eyes glued on hers, and she bliked at him before instinctively dropping her eyes to his waiting lips. She moved her hands from his back to his cheeks, cupping his face, while Caleb rested both his ones on her lower back. Then, she took a deep breath and closed her eyes. The last thing she saw was his mouth with his lips slightly parted, craving for her, because yeah, even if he had been the usual gentleman and he hadn't made a move to facilitate the kiss, she had read into his eyes how badly he wanted her. Probably exactly like she wanted him.

Finally, Hanna crashed her lips on Caleb's, making their kiss immediately passionate. She felt him moaning slightly and that sent a tingle straight to the apex of her legs. She pulled herself up slightly and gently moved his head to another angle, sliding her tongue into his mouth. He happily received her, exploring her mouth as well. It was a wine-flavored kiss, a wet kiss, a strong kiss, a deep kiss. Their lips smacked loudly more than once, and they both were breathing heavily, but no one of them seemed inclined to break the kiss —if it could still be called 'kiss'—.

After God-knows-how-long, Hanna felt the need to take a breath, so she parted from Caleb's mouth making a weird noise. They were both flushed and panting. She smiled at him a little embarassed, and she was thankful he couldn't see her blush since her face was already too flushed.

"Wow." he grinned, rubbing her back softly.

Hanna bit her lower lip, still half-smiling.

"You know, I think your teeth and gums are perfect... Trust me, I understand this kind of things." he joked.

She rolled her eyes slightly but chuckled.

"By the way... I like you too, Hanna. You're beautiful, kind, respectful, diligent... I've liked you from the first day you walked in my studio with John and Sean, two months and something ago. I've always liked you, even when I had to see you leave the studio with that douche everyday... _Always_." Caleb continued, moving a strand of her hair from her face to behind her ear.

Hanna smiled again as he placed his hands on her back again.

"You don't... You don't think we're too...different?" she asked hesitantly.

"Why? Because I'm nine years older than you and I'm your boss? Absolutely not. Look, I really don't think age can be a problem. We're more similar than I thought we were. Age is just a number, Hanna. You're much maturer than any twenty-three years old girl... The fact that you both study and work already speaks for itself. And... The fact that I'm your boss doesn't mean anything. We've always worked very well together because we're both professional people. And I know that we can keep going this way, whatever happens, right because we're professional. Don't you think?"

Hanna took a deep breath and realized that he was right, after all.

"Yeah... I think you're right." she murmured.

"Good. Well, so...unless you think I'm too old for you, I guess we're okay." Caleb smirked.

Hanna chuckled, but kept her gaze down for a long moment.

"Hey... Is there something wrong?" he asked softly.

She shook her head and lifted her gaze.

"I just... I don't know where exactly things between us stand right now." she mumrured.

He sighed and shrugged.

"Look... We're both trying to let ourselves go, right? There's no need for us to ask too many questions right now. Let's just see where it goes. Let's not label it. I've always planned my whole life, Hanna, and that hasn't brought me anything good, as you can see. I don't want to waste this opportunity with you in the same way." he replied, looking straight into her eyes.

"Wow... You really know what to say, huh?" she smiled.

"Guess so." he replied with a smirk.

He leaned in again and caught her lips in his again, resuming their make-out session. Hanna seemed happy about his idea, and she pushed herself forward on the couch until she was straddling him. She placed her legs on either side of his thighs and cupped his face again, never breaking the kiss. Caleb didn't take advantage of the situation in any way, keeping his hands on her lower back without going too low. He really didn't want to press her. But he started feeling _something_ growing between his legs. He was a gentleman, yeah, but he still was _a_ _man_ , first of all. A man who hadn't had sex in months, who was missing _so_ bad something other than his own hand around his cock, and who was currently straddled by a beautiful, _gorgeous_ blonde. However, luckily for him, she seemed not to notice it. He was almost relieved when she stopped, since he didn't know how much longer he would have been able to hold himself back from jumping on her. And he didn't want to do that already. He didn't want her to think he just wanted... _that_.

"I know you said no more questions, but... I guess we should keep this a secret... At least for now." she whispered, returning to look at him.

Caleb licked his lips and nodded.

"I think it would be the best for both of us. I don't care about what people think, but on the other hand I don't know how this could be taken by the people at the studio. You know, I wouldn't like to create any tension at work..." he suggested.

Hanna nodded and got off him, sticking herself out toward the table to pour again some wine in her glass. Caleb, in the meanwhile, couldn't help but take a look at her tight rounded ass, emphasized into her skinny dark jeans. He felt himself growing harder and shook his head quickly.

"Want some?" she asked, turning around and handing him his glass.

He smiled and accepted it, drinking it quickly before putting it back on the coffee table. When Hanna went back to kiss him, he knew he couldn't keep going. He reluctantly pulled away and nodded again toward their glasses.

"C'mon, let's have another one." he whispered.

She was more than happy to drink again, and then again and again, until they finished the whole bottle. Hanna ended up sitting on the couch with her legs sprawled over his lap and her head curled up on his chest, as Caleb held her to him. They drifted off to sleep after hours of drinking wine, laughing and kissing.

* * *

 **A/N: Yeah, it finally happened ;) I hope you guys liked the chapter, it was pretty hard to write and I changed it a thousand times before finally being quite happy about it... So, Caleb finally opened up about his feelings, and from now I promise you'll see more about him :) Anyway, the number of the reviews to this story left me speechless... 68 in 5 chapters! O.O I don't think I've ever received all of these comments to just five chapters in this whole first year on this website. You guys are seriously making me happy about it... I was a little insecure about starting this story, like I'm always insecure about AUs, but seeing you're enjoying it really makes it easier to write :):) So, again, thank you, seriously, every single one of you :D Now I'm very curious to find out your thoughts about this chapter since I guess it was the one you were waiting for :P Review and let me know :) also... What do you think it will happen next? I'll try to update soon :) Have a great day :) Love you guys! xx -Atramea.**


	7. Chapter 7

Hanna jumped off Caleb, waking up suddenly because of her mobile ringing from the pocket of her jeans. She used around ten seconds to open her eyes and realize she was cuddling with Caleb on his couch, with the smell of his cologne mixed to the wine under her nose, and there was also a dim light coming from the large window of the living room. She picked up without seeing who it was.

"Uhm... Hello?" she said through the speaker, as Caleb slowly started waking up as well.

"Hanna! Where the hell are you? Do you know what time it is?" her mom yelled from the other line.

Hanna felt her head explode. She already had a huge headache, her mom shouting wasn't helping at all. She rubbed her eyes and moaned slightly.

"Mom, don't worry, I'm okay..." she mumbled.

"You're okay? Seriously? God, Hanna, I've always let you go out, whenever you want, and I have never even wanted to know what time you come back, but I need you to come back! I can't wake up at six 'o clock in the morning to drink a glass of water and see you're not in your bed! What do you have in mind?"

"Yeah, okay, mom... Just stop yelling, I'm coming home." Hanna murmured, quickly hanging up.

She snorted and moaned again, as Caleb rubbed and than opened his eyes.

"Hey..." he whispered, smiling softly at her.

"Hey, morning." she whispered back, stretching herself.

"I guess we both fell asleep without realizing it last night..."

"Ugh, yeah. Sorry if I woke you up, by the way."

"Don't worry. Is everything okay, though?"

Hanna sighed before replying.

"It's just my mom, she's a little too apprehensive. I know what you're thinking, I'm twenty-three and she treats me like I was thirteen, yeah... Now you see why I didn't want her to know about that creep at the bus station?" she muttered, getting up from the couch.

Caleb took a deep breath and smiled, a little sadly.

"That's not what I'm thinking, absolutely. Actually, I was thinking that I'd give anything to have my own mom back here. And trust me, she was as apprehensive as yours." he told her.

Hanna bit hard her bottom lip.

"Shit, Caleb... I'm sorry, I didn't want to..." she whispered.

"It's okay." Caleb told her, standing up.

"Being honest, my mom is the person whom I love the most in this world. She has basically raised me alone, since my dad and her splitted up when I was just a kid. And you know what's the funny thing? My dad cheated on her, too." she mumbled.

He took her hands in his and shrugged.

"She's a strong woman, then. She's your mom indeed." he smiled then.

Hanna smiled back, shyly.

"Go home now. She's worried for you. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have let you drink so much wine last night... It was my fault." he continued, slightly brushing his fingers on her cheek.

Hanna laughed slightly.

"It wasn't your fault. Plus, I enjoyed it. Even if... Well, maybe if we hadn't fallen asleep, we could have had some more fun." she replied, biting her lip, halfway through awkwardly and seductively.

Caleb raised his eyebrows at that. He didn't know how much Hanna was experienced in sex, but he actually liked supposing it. So he simply smirked, pulling her closer to him and then giving her a long lingering kiss.

"You okay to drive?" he asked when he pulled away.

She nodded and Caleb led her out taking her by the hand. As soon as they exited the house, Charlie ran to them and Hanna said goodbye to him as usual by now, then they got to her car.

"Well... If you want to come back later today, I'll be here. Otherwise, I'll just see you at work on Monday." he said, opening the door for her.

Hanna grinned.

"Unless my mom locks me in the house...I'll see you later." she told him.

"Good."

Hanna leaned in and kissed him one last time before getting into her car. She watched him from her rear-view mirror as he pulled out of the pocket of his sweats and then lightened up a cigarette, and then saw Charlie ran to him again. She smiled at that sight.

She didn't know why, but she liked seeing him like that, standing in the middle of his garden, in his simple sweatpants, with a cigarette between his lips and with his dog faithfully sitting by his side. That wasn't doctor Rivers, thirty-two years old, married and with the big house. That was just Caleb, the man she liked.

He waved at her and she smiled one last time before pulling out of his driveway, speeding toward her own house.

* * *

Hanna opened the front door of her house and immediately noticed her mom waiting for her behind it, with her arms crossed over her chest and a definitely angry expression.

"I hope you have a _very_ good excuse." she told her.

Hanna sighed and closed the door behind her back.

"I was with my friends, mom. Chill." she snapped, rolling her eyes.

"It's almost half past six in the morning, Hanna!" she shouted.

"So what? I'm twenty-three years old, damn it!"

"It doesn't mean anything! You have to come back home and spend the night here and not God-knows-where!"

"I was at Spencer's, okay? We just fell asleep on the couch, we didn't notice what time it was until you woke us up calling me!"

"You should have texted me saying you were there before anything!"

"I'm no longer a baby, mom!"

Ashley sighed and rubbed her forehead.

"Hanna, no matter how old you are, you'll always be my baby and I'll always be your mom. I need to protect you and keep you safe. Maybe I should have never let you so much freedom, that's it." she added then, less loud than before.

"Okay, mom, look... I'm sorry. You're right, I should have told you I was at Spencer's. I promise that's not gonna happen again. Alright?"

Ashley sighed.

"Go to your room now. And stay home for the whole day." she murmured then.

"What? No, mom, that's not gonna happen!"

"Yes, it is."

"No, you don't get it. I need to see Caleb today!"

It just slipped from her lips. _Shit_.

"Caleb? You mean Doctor Rivers?" her mom asked.

"Yes, Caleb Rivers. We need to fix some papers and stuff for the studio."

"But it's Sunday."

"Yeah, well, last Friday I told him I was going to help him this weekend."

"I don't believe you, Han. You're just looking for a way to get out of here without my prohibition."

"I'm telling the truth, mom. What, you need to call him to ask him if that's true?" Hanna raised an eyebrow.

Ashley paused for a second before replying.

"So... You will be at the studio?" she asked.

"Of course. Where could we go?"

"I thought the studio stayed closed on weekends..."

Hanna snorted.

"Look, I don't know. But I know that I have to help him today. You can't forbid me this. It's work stuff, mom. And I owe Rivers a lot. I do have to do this." she said then.

Ashley sighed.

"Okay, if that's work... You can go. But you need to come back here right after that. What time do you have to go?" she asked.

"Four 'o clock." Hanna told her, saying the first thing come up to her mind.

"You have to be back by seven thirty."

Hanna rolled her eyes.

"Fine." she snapped then.

Ashley nodded toward the stairs, and Hanna walked to her room, sighing. Once entered her room and closed the door, she climbed on her bed and smirked. Someway she felt guilty because of the lies with her mom, but she was too happy about what had happened to Caleb. She took her mobile from her purse, which had thrown to the floor a few seconds earlier, and texted him.

 _Get the bathing suits ready. I'll see u later :P_

He replied shortly after, and Hanna's smirk grew even more.

 _So we're officially going to share the pool? :)_

 _If u still want to... ;)_

 _Oh, you'll see ;)_

Hanna let out a small giggle before drifting off to sleep, still a little tired from her last night.

* * *

She woke up around eleven in the morning. Her mobile was ringing loudly, and she cursed herself because she hadn't silenced it before falling asleep. She looked at the caller ID with narrowed eyes and picked up snorting.

"Spence, what the hell! It's Sunday morning!" she muttered.

"Good morning to you too, sunbeam. It's eleven, by the way."

"Sorry... What's up?" Hanna sighed.

"The girls and I wanna go to the mall later. You're with us, right?"

"Shit, I can't..." Hanna moaned.

"And why is that?"

"My mom put me in punishment because I got home like four or five hours ago... God, seems like I'm thirteen years old instead of twenty-three..."

"What? But... You got out of the club with me and Toby last night and it was only midnight! Where the fuck have you been for the whole night?"

Hanna stayed speechless for a moment. Dammit, she shouldn't have told her. And no, she was definitely not going to tell Spencer that she had been with Caleb at his place drinking wine, laughing and making out for the whole night. She couldn't, or at least not yet.

"Uhm... Yeah, well... You remember Holden, that friend of Sean's, right? Yeah, we just... We met at... Uhm, at the gas station... We just...started chatting and then he asked me if I wanted to come to his place... I said yes, because I honestly didn't want to come home yet... But no worries, absolutely nothing happened. We just watched a boring lame movie and then we both fell asleep on the couch. I woke up at six 'o clock because my mom was calling me freaking out... That's it." she stammered.

"Holden Strauss? I didn't know you liked him..."

"I don't! I was just bored, and he was nice, so I thought 'why not?', but... That's it, I told you."

"Well, whatever. There's no way you can convince your mom, right?"

"You know her, Spence. I guess I'll just see you guys at college tomorrow."

"Okay, Han. You're the usual troublemaker, by the way!"

Hanna chuckled slightly.

"I know, yeah... Buy something nice for me too, though!" she added then.

"We will. Bye, Han!"

"Bye, Spence!"

Hanna hung up and decided to go downstairs. She helped her mom cook lunch, feeling guilty for the worry she had caused her and for the lies about Caleb. They ate together, and even if Ashley was still kinda mad at Hanna and also still convinced about the punishment, she didn't act so tough with her. However, when it was four 'o clock, Hanna hastily left the house, promising her mom she was just going to _help_ Caleb.

* * *

As soon as Hanna reached Caleb's house, she immediately smiled. She saw him shirtless, in the garden, mowing the grass. The sun was illuminating him and his arms were slightly covered by a light coat of sweat, which made his skin look pearled. His abs were hard and tense, and he looked absolutely hot. Charlie was lying on the carpet of the front door. Caleb lifted his gaze when he heard an engine and smiled brightly when he saw it was Hanna. She parked near his BMW and Caleb walked to the car in time to open the door for her, with that charming smile of his.

"Hey." he said as he helped her get out offering his hand.

"Hey." she replied, smiling and grabbing his hand.

She shut the door closed and locked eyes with him for a long moment before Charlie interrupted them almost jumping on Hanna.

"Hey, hello to you too!" she laughed, slightly bending over to give the dog some attentions.

"Shit, Charlie... Are you seriously cockblocking me?" Caleb muttered, stroking the dog's fur as well, as Hanna laughed more.

Caleb grabbed a tennis ball from the ground and throw it far enough in the garden to make Charlie run after it. Then, he pur his hands on Hanna's hips and leaned in so that their noses were touching.

"You look gorgeous, you know that?" he whispered.

Hanna smiled as she linked her arms behind his neck.

"Said the sexy shirtless man." she whispered back.

Caleb laughed slightly before joining their lips together, kissing her softly. It was sweet and short, but it still gave Hanna's legs a weakness feeling.

"How did it go with your mom?" he asked then, with their noses still slightly touching.

"Oh, well... She let me get out of the house just because I told her I was going to come to you. Obviously, she thinks it's about work, but... Yeah, I managed to come."

Caleb raised his eyebrows.

"Work? On Sunday?" he asked.

"Whatever. What could I say?"

Caleb laughed and then pulled away from her, but grabbing her hand.

"Let's go inside. We need to put the bathing suits on, right?" he smirked.

Hanna didn't reply but smirked back, following him inside holding his hand.

* * *

 **A/N: Hi everybody :) Sorry for the late! I totally can't believe this story has almost ninety reviews to just 6 chapters :O You guys are simply the best :D Seriously, your words and support mean a lot to me. I'm so so happy that you all are enjoying this ride that much! So I hope the morning-after chapter was enough good for you ;) Sooo... Things between Hanna and Caleb have just started :) What do you think it's happening next? Since things just started, I can tell you that they will keep this as a secret for a while. For the ones who want Caleb to open up more to Hanna about himself, I promise he will, you just have to wait a little and give their relationship some time to evolve ;) but you won't be disappointed :D Oh, you're welcome for the shirtless-sweaty-Caleb mowing the grass ^^ I'm sorry I can just describe but not show you, but well, still better than nothing, right? :P Well, then, thanks everyone for reading :) I'd be happy if you keep letting me know what you think of the development of the story, it helps me a lot to write... And, just for the record, I think you're gonna love the few following chapters ;) Thank you again for the support and happy PLL day — You're probably watching it right now but here in Italy I have to wait for it until tomorrow... Hope it's gonna be good :) Love you guys! xx -Atramea.**


	8. Chapter 8

After getting changed in separate rooms, they met in the living room. Caleb waited for Hanna sitting on the couch in just his trunks, and then she walked down the stairs wrapped in a towel, with a bikini underneath, taken from the guestroom. Caleb watched her making his way down the stairs in awe. When she reached him, it was her the one who offered her hand and he obviously took it. They made their way back outside. Luckily Caleb lived in a rather isolated area, so they didn't have to worry about any gossip. This time Charlie was too busy chewing on his tennis ball to pay attention to the two.

Hanna got into the pool slowly, walking down the small stepladder, while Caleb literally jumped in. It felt amazing. The day was hot, and the water felt really nice over their skin.

They spent some time swimming and playing in the water, then Hanna leaned against the pool wall and stretched her arms toward Caleb, a few steps away from her. He smiled and approached her until she could link her arms behind his neck. They look into each others eyes for a long moment, without doing anything else. Caleb thought about how beautiful Hanna's eyes looked under the sunlight. Her blue orbs were shining even more than usual, and he noticed how long her now wet eyelashes were. Hanna roamed an hand through Caleb's wet locks and smiled shyly, as he placed his hands on her hips. His touch was always so soft and gentle. He had never taken any advantage to touch the 'private' areas of her body, even though he had had enough chances to do it without being a creep. Hanna could feel how mature he was. He was a real gentleman, not a whatever horny guy. However, she was extremely attracted to him also phisically. And she knew he was attracted to her too, even if he hadn't tried to go any further so far. But now they were there, just the two of them, in a pool, more naked than clothed, so close to each other that their breaths were almost the same thing.

Hanna pursed her lips and wrapped her legs around his waist, pulling him closer. Their centres were aligned, and Caleb widened his eyes slightly. But then he istinctively closed them, because Hanna kissed him on the lips, gently at first, but then she let the passion take the control. She slightly bit his lower lip, and Caleb moaned, parting his own lips for a moment, and Hanna used that moment to slide her tongue into his mouth. Caleb moaned again, but in approval, merging his tongue with hers. He slowly moved his large hands under her thighs, keeping her steady wrapped around his body, and used his chest to keep her pressed against the pool wall too, so that he could continue kissing her. Hanna could now feel Caleb's real taste, since the last time they kissed the wine flavour had misrepresented it. And he tasted absolutely amazing. It was the same for Caleb, who was now also starting to feel a little turned on, and he didn't know if he was gonna be able to hold himself back this time too. He didn't want Hanna to think that he just wanted to fuck her, but God, he did want that _too_ , so bad. His desire to have sex after all that time was clearly strong. And that girl in front of him was so perfect, in every single way. He felt his cock getting harder and harder as Hanna kept making out with him, rubbing those small soft hands of hers up and down his back and tightening her legs around his hips, so that her center was pressed right against his length, only separated by the material of their bathing suits.

He knew he couldn't stop then.

He interrupted their kiss just to move his head to her neck, kissing some random spots on her wet skin before focusing himself on her pulsepoint, where he started sucking, hard. This time was Hanna the one who moaned, throwing her head back against the pool wall and enjoying the feeling of Caleb's lips on her neck. She soon became aware of his erection, it was now impossible not to notice it. And that turned Hanna on too. Caleb abruptly left her skin, leaving a huge hickey and then brushed his nose on her throat before kissing the crook between her breasts. Hanna shivered and closed her eyes as Caleb kept drawing a trail of kisses around her cleavage, before reaching one of her breasts, where he started licking her nipple through the material of the bathing suit. She moaned again and decided it was time to do something.

"Let's... Let's go inside." she mumbled, lifting his head with her hands.

As much as Caleb's place was isolated, Hanna still didn't think it was a good idea to do some kind of things outside, especially if it was afternoon. He nodded, agreeing with her, then left his grasp on her legs and pulled away from her, so that she could get out of the pool. He helped her and she quickly made her way inside, while Caleb was still getting out of the pool.

He slowly walked inside, drying himself with his towel, then closed the front door and looked up, on top of the stairs, where Hanna was drying herself with a towel as well. She looked so sexy that he could almost feel himself drool like his dog did in front of a bone. She untied her hair and it fell on her shoulders before letting the towel fall to the ground. She looked down at him and smiled at his facial expression. She was totally in love with the way he looked at her. Then, she reached behind herself and untied the upper part of her bikini, making it fall to the ground next to the towel. Caleb widened his eyes once again and swallowed hard, as he felt his cock throb in his trunks in front of the perfect bare chest of Hanna. She smiled one last time before turning around and continuing to made her way upstairs. Caleb took a deep breath and then followed her, quickly, eagerly.

She was waiting for him in front of the door of his bedroom. Caleb approached her slowly, taking in all her beauty, but when he found himself in front of her he didn't wait a second more to kiss her, strongly, against the wall. Hanna once again wrapped her legs around his waist as he lifted her up and pressed her back against the wall. This time her hands went lower, reaching the waistband of his trunks and pulling them down quickly. Caleb grunted as he buried his face into her exposed chest and pulled aside the material of the panties of Hanna's bathing suit. He felt her smell in the air and her wetness over his fingertips and that made his cock more than ready to enter her. He lifted his head and pressed his forehead against hers.

"Hanna... Are you sure?" he mumbled, panting.

She nodded quicky.

"Yes." she whispered, gripping his shoulders.

Caleb nodded briefly and stayed focused on her eyes as he slowly entered her, an inch a time. But then he had to squeeze his eyes shut, feeling her so tight around his member. Hanna did the same, moaning halfway through pleasure and pain. She hadn't had sex with anyone else but Sean until then, and she could perfectly feel how much bigger Caleb was, without a doubt.

"Oh, shit..." he muttered.

Hanna was tight as hell and that felt extremely nice to Caleb, but as much as he wanted to start pounding badly into her, he knew he had to give her some time to adjust to his size, otherwise he would have hurt her, and of course he didn't want to. He opened his eyes and saw a pain expression drawn on Hanna's face, still with her eyes closed. He took her face between his hands and rubbed her cheeks gently.

"Hey, hey... Look at me..." he whispered.

Hanna lifted her eyelids and met his eyes.

"Are you okay?" he asked then.

Hanna relaxed her muscles and breathed out. Finally, she started getting adjusted and the pain was almost totally gone. She nodded and gave him a small smile before kissing him, inciting him to restart moving with her legs. Caleb, then, thrusted himself into her and they moaned simultaneously in each other's mouth. He thrusted a second and a third time, but then he suddenly stopped.

"Are you on the pill?" he asked softly.

Hanna bit her lip and cursed herself for being so thoughtless, then shook her head, unable to form proper words.

"Okay, okay... Don't worry." he replied.

He slowly and reluctantly slid out of her and, still holding her to him, he walked with her into his bedroom, gently lying her on his bed. He got rid of his trunks for good and then reached out to the drawer of his nightstand, pulling out a condom and placing it on the bedside table. He returned to look at Hanna and smiled at her, lowering himself on her body and restarting to kiss her. In the meanwhile, he finally untied the knots of the lower part of her bathing suit and tossed it somewhere in the room. He slowly made his way down with his mouth, kissing her neck, her breasts, her belly. Hanna guided him with an hand pressed behind his head until he reached the apex of her legs. Caleb spreaded her legs gently and glanced at her as he finally licked her lower lips. Hanna shifted beneath him and let out a pretty loud moan, which turned him on even more. Then, with his fingers, he kept her lower lips open so that he could finally have access to her clit. Hanna moaned louder, gripping his hair tighter. He continued enjoying her taste, occasionally glancing up at her to see the flush on her face and her eyes closed in bliss. She was so beautiful. He kept going, even quicker, wanting Hanna to come into his mouth. But then he caught sight of her eyes lost in a spot of his bedroom, suddenly unfocused. He stopped and raised his head to look at her.

"Is everything okay?" he murmured, suddenly worried that he had done something wrong or crossed some boundary.

Hanna sighed. She had just seen the picture on his chest of drawers, the one in which he was with his wife, the day of their wedding. And she had suddenly remembered that she was hooking up with a married man on the bed which he had shared with his wife. He was no longer wearing his wedding ring, but that picture was still there, and that totally disturbed her. Caleb, not receiving an answer, turned around to where she was looking at and sighed as well. He got up and walked to the chest of drawers, lowering the frame of the picture onto the wood, and then turned back to Hanna.

"I'm sorry, I should have put it away." he said.

"Caleb, I... We... This... This is wrong." she stammered, sitting up on the bed.

He shook his head and came back to her.

"Don't even think about that, okay? Melissa is part of my past. You and I are doing nothing wrong here, got it? She left me, and I have all the right to start over... You told me that night, the first night you came here, and I understood you were right. Why do we always have to feel like we're doing something wrong? That's not true." he explained her.

Hanna sighed again and bit her lip. Caleb took her face between his hands and looked straight into her eyes.

"I never felt this way for a girl after Melissa left me before you came into my life. You changed my way of seeing things, you're special, and I... I don't want to lose you just because I made the mistake of marrying someone who didn't actually love me. Please, Hanna... If you want this, don't hang back because of... _her_." he continued.

"This was her bed too, Caleb."

"Yeah, it _was_. But it's no longer hers. This is just _my_ bed now. And I want you in my bed."

His tone was serious and ordering, but the look into his eyes totally melted her. He had asked to let herself go the previous day, and she had accepted it. And God, she wanted him. So, after a few seconds, Hanna decided to go on and crashed her lips on his, making their tongues immediately meet, again. While kissing, Caleb grabbed the condom from the nightstand and pulled away from Hanna just to roll it over his length, as she sucked on his neck. When he was done, he spreaded her legs again and settled himself between them. Hanna lied back on the mattress and placed her hands on his ass, burying her fingernails into his flesh as he pushed himself inside of her again, this time all in once. She let out a cry and bit down on his shoulder as Caleb grunted in pleasure. He gripped the headboard of the bed to sustain himself as he started thrusting, rather quickly. Hanna started sighing into his ear as he left kisses on her neck, while his thrusts became harder and deeper as they went on. But soon he became aware that he was going to come shortly after if he would keep going that way, and it was still too early, because he wanted to enjoy that time with Hanna much longer.

So, Caleb slowed down his thrusts and left his grasp on the headboard, moving his hands back on the bed to grab Hanna's ones. He interlaced their fingers and gave her hands a gentle squeeze before lifting himself slightly and kissing her softly on the lips, keeping to thrust slowly. They kissed for a while, still moving their hips in synchrony, before Caleb rolled over bringing Hanna with him, suggesting for her to be on top. Without making him slide outside of her, she accepted his suggestion and went on top of him. She lifted herself slightly, pressing her hands on his chest. She titled her head to the side and looked down at him. He had his hair still damp and his face was flushed, but his eyes were completely focused on her. Hanna moved her hands over his torso, feeling his abs twitching under the touch of her fingertips, as he moved his hands to her ass, gripping her cheeks. Finally, she pushed her hips forward, finding an amazing friction and a new angle that made Caleb groan and squeeze his eyes shut. She set the perfect pace, not too slow not too quick, and kept rocking herself on him. Everything felt so amazing. Caleb massaged her asscheeks, then moved his hands to her hips, guiding her movements, and then to each of her breasts, playing with her nipples between his fingers as she kept riding him. Hanna closed her eyes and threw her head back as she gradually increased the speed, feeling the need to come.

She didn't feel pain anymore. She felt good, really good. Caleb was kissing her, touching her, making love to her like a _man_. It was totally different than any of her times with Sean. When she had been with him, she had barely felt something. Sean wasn't really inventive and passionate, he thrusted a few times and then he was already done, then he usually gave her a sloppy kiss before rolling over and drifting off to sleep immediately, starting to snore straight away without worrying too much about Hanna's pleasure. So she had never felt the way Caleb was making her feel before.

Caleb was almost in heaven too. That was his first time with a woman after Melissa. Hanna felt amazing around him, and he knew it wasn't just because of the fact that he hadn't had sex in months and months.

Suddenly, then, Caleb felt Hanna's inner walls starting to twitch slightly around his cock, and he understood that she was about to orgasm. He lifted his back from the mattress and rested his hands back on her ass, pushing her onto him more strongly. She started breathing heavily, and her hips were moving almost frantically by now. Caleb held her tightly to him and tried to thrust into her as well to make her reach her peak, gently sucking on one of her shoulders. It was then that Hanna screamed as the orgasm rushed over her whole body. She could tell that she had never felt that good in her life before without a doubt. And when she came, she became so freaking tight that Caleb couldn't help but come as well. She was already tight, but when she orgasmed and her walls started twitching hard around his cock, he really couldn't do anything to hold himself back. He said her name, and he would have wanted to say it in a more decent way than the low grunt that eventually came out of his mouth, instead. He fell back on the mattress pulling Hanna down with him, still into her. Both their muscles were twitching uncontrollably, and they didn't have control of their bodies or minds at that moment. They just lied there together, both panting, flushed, sweaty and exhausted, in each other's arms. After a couple of minutes of recovery, they heard Charlie bark from outside and that made both of them laugh slightly, because it was the only sound that joined their satisfied breathing. Then, Hanna lifted herself off him and rolled over so that she was next to him, and Caleb quickly got rid of the protection before turning on his side to look at Hanna.

"I... I haven't done this in a while... I hope it wasn't too bad." he smiled.

Hanna blushed and smiled back shyly, avoiding to confess how good he had actually done. He chuckled and leaned in, kissing her.

"Wait here, I'm going to prepare something." he smirked then, getting out of bed and walking out of the room.

Hanna smiled and sighed happily before throwing her head on the pillow. She felt good. She would never imagine that she was going to have sex with the charming doctor Rivers if someone had told her two months earlier. But there she was now, lying on his bed, naked and sweaty. And it had been awesome.

* * *

Caleb came back to her a little after, leaning naked by the doorframe of the bedroom. He gestured for her to follow him, so she got up and walked out of the room with him. They reached his bathroom, where there was a Jacuzzi full of hot water ready to be used for a relaxing whirlpool. And next to it, placed on one of the bathroom counters, there were two glasses full of wine. Hanna turned to him and smiled.

"I thought we needed to wash the chlorine off our bodies, so... After you." he told her, nodding toward the tub.

She walked to the Jacuzzi and slowly got into the water. Caleb followed her and settled himself behind her, spreading his legs so that she could place herself sitting in between them and rest her head back against his chest. She did so, and he wrapped his arms around her stomach as he placed his chin on top of her head. He left a kiss through her hair before starting the whirlpool and closing his eyes. Hanna closed her eyes as well, enjoying the wonderful hydro-massage.

"It was amazing, by the way." she whispered after a good few minutes.

Caleb smiled, still with his eyes closed.

"Yeah, it was." he whispered back.

They enjoyed their whirlpool for a while, then Caleb stopped it and took the two glasses of wine and handed one to Hanna.

"Sorry, next time I'll go for champagne." he smirked.

"No, wine is perfect. It feels more... _intimate_." Hanna smiled as she took the glass from his hands.

"Oh, yeah?" he raised his eyebrows.

"Yeah." she replied before pecking his lips quickly.

"I'm sorry about earlier, by the way."

He almost looked ashamed. Hanna gave him a small smile, maybe more like a bitter one, but she reassured him.

"No, _I_ 'm sorry. She's still an important part of your life, I can't just demand that you throw anything about her away... Actually, I'm no one to demand anything from you."

"And why would you think that you're no one to me?" Caleb asked before taking a sip from his glass.

Hanna finished her wine and turned her neck slightly to face him again.

"Who am I to you then?" she asked, raising her eyebrows.

Caleb smirked and finished his wine as well before putting their glasses away and placing his hands on her bare shoulders.

"There's no proper word to define that right now. But I could say that you're... _special_." he added.

Hanna giggled and then moaned slightly as he started giving her a slow, sensual back rub in the water.

"Mmmh... You have a lot of hidden talents..." she mumbled.

"I'm full of surprises..." he whispered, kissing the back of her neck as he kept working on her nerves.

After the massage was done, they drank another glass of wine before getting out of the Jacuzzi. They dried themselves with a couple of towels and then climbed back on his bed, still naked. Hanna was surprised about how she felt comfortable to be naked around him and to have him naked around her. She wasn't embarassed at all, it felt almost natural. She cuddled up to him, resting her head on his bare chest as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

"Do you mind if I smoke a cigarette?" he said then, stretching an arm toward the pack of cigarettes placed on the nightstand.

Hanna shook her head as he took one from the pack and put it between his lips. Then, he took a lighter from the drawer and lightened up the cigarette before putting it back in the drawer. He took a drag and then let out a stream of smoke from the corner of his mouth, making sure not to blow it right on Hanna's face.

"You have college tomorrow?" he asked then, running his free hand up and down her bare arm.

"Yeah."

"What time?"

"I have the first class at half past ten, I think. Why?"

"Stay here with me tonight. Sleep over."

Hanna sighed and looked up at him.

"I can't... Don't you remember that my mom is mad at me? She would never allow me to spend the night out tonight, especially since I didn't come home last night." she muttered then.

Caleb moaned in disapproval as he took another long drag.

"I need you in my bed tonight..." he said then, looking down at her.

Hanna bit her lip at his statement, reading a clear double meaning. But it didn't bother her, at all.

"I'm sorry... I'm gonna try to do something, but I know my mom too well. She won't give in." she replied, sighing.

Caleb placed a kiss through her hair.

"Don't worry, I get it." he told her gently.

He finished smoking his cigarette and then stayed quiet with her on the bed for a long time, caressing her and kissing her once in a while, without saying anything. Hanna felt so good and relaxed that she was about to fall asleep between his arms, then she remembered something.

"Caleb?" she whispered.

"Huh?"

"What time is it?"

Caleb glanced at the alarm on his nightstand.

"Ten to seven." he replied then.

"Shit." she muttered.

Caleb chuckled slightly.

"What?" he asked.

"I promised my mom I would be back home at seven thirty. That means that I have to start getting ready, like, now."

"Can't you stay at least for dinner?"

Hanna shrugged and smiled sadly.

"I'm sorry." she whispered then.

"Let me give her a call. Maybe I can manage to convince her to let you have dinner here."

"I just don't want her to get suspicious about us, you know..."

Caleb smiled at her.

"Okay, well... Maybe you're right. She already let you come this afternoon, we probably shouldn't take any other advantage for today." he said.

"Thanks for understanding." Hanna smiled.

Caleb smiled back once again and then pressed a light kiss on the tip of her nose.

"I'm going to get dressed." she told him.

"Sure." he nodded, letting go of his gentle grasp around her body.

Hanna got up from the bed and went to the guest room, where she had left her clothes. Caleb watched her walking out of his room completely naked. She was such a beauty. He took one last look at her ass before sighing and getting up as well, finding his clothes and putting them back on too.

* * *

Caleb was quicker, so he went outside to give Charlie some food. Hanna came up to them a little after.

"Hey, everything okay?" Caleb smiled at her.

"Yeah. Sorry if I took a little, it's just that I had to fix my make up... I had to put some foundation cream on my neck too, since I really don't want my mom to see your _signature_ right there..." she smirked.

He chuckled and wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Sorry about that. I tried to be as gentle as possible, but... You kinda drive me crazy..." he whispered in her ear.

Hanna laughed as she leaned into his embrace.

"Don't worry. It was perfect the way it was..." she whispered back then.

" _You_ are perfect..." he continued, slipping his hands underneath her shirt.

He brushed his fingertips over the smooth bare skin of her back, and Hanna shivered under his touch.

"I don't want to go..." she whispered again.

Caleb chuckled slightly.

"Then don't..." he suggested.

Hanna chuckled as well and then reluctantly pulled away from his hug.

"Nice try... I'll see you tomorrow." she said before pecking his lips quickly.

She quickly turned around to walk to her car but then he grabbed her wrist and pulled her back to him. Hanna just raised her eyebrows at him. Caleb smirked and shook his head, then he slowly moved his head closer to hers. He placed his large hands firmly on her hips and crashed his lips against hers. He traced the opening of her lips with his tongue and she opened them for him, so he pushed his tongue into her mouth. Hanna placed her small hands on either side of his face and guided him onto the kiss, her tongue playing with his. She could taste a light aftertaste of smoke, but she found out that she didn't really dislike it. She loved the way he kissed her, it simply made her feel weak but on top of the world at the same time. Then she felt his hands become more daring, because they slowly slip down from her hips to her ass. He placed each one on either of her cheeks and gave them a light squeeze through her jeans, still kissing her, and she moaned slightly into his mouth. He pulled away after a while, licking his own lips before pressing one last kiss on hers.

"I'd kiss you all day long, but I think you need to go. I don't want your mom to lock you for the rest of your life, because I need to see you again as soon as possible." he whispered with his hands still resting on her ass and his lips still close to hers.

Hanna bit her lower lip and rubbed his slightly-bearded cheeks before nodding.

"I agree with you. I need to go. Thank you for today." she whispered.

"Thank _you_." Caleb echoed, smiling.

Hanna locked eyes with him for a long moment before finally finding enough strength to pull away from him, reluctantly, then she smiled at him and Charlie one last time before reaching her car without turning around.

Caleb watched her leave, smiling at himself, without even noticing that Charlie had finished eating and was waiting for some more dry food.

* * *

Hanna came back home in perfect time. Her mom looked relieved to see that she had obeyed. However, what she told her shortly after made Hanna a little worried.

"Your friends came here today. They wanted to convince me to let you go shopping with them... I guess they didn't know you had to work."

Hanna stayed silent for a few seconds before replying.

"Yeah, I didn't tell them because it wasn't important. I mean, if I hadn't had to go to work, I would have been here and I couldn't have gone shopping anyway. Either way, I couldn't. But... You told them I was working?"

"Yeah, I told them you had to do something for doctor Rivers. Why?"

 _Shit_. Now their friends knew that she had been with Caleb the whole time. And they probably imagined it wasn't about work.

"Nothing, mom. That's fine. I'll help you cook dinner." she replied quickly.

After dinner, when Hanna was already in her bedroom, as she had imagined, Spencer called her. She picked up already snorting.

"Yes?"

"Hanna? Where the hell have you been today?"

"Chill, Spence. You sound like my mom, and my mom knew where I was today, so..."

"You were with the dentist, weren't you?"

"And what's the problem? I needed to help him with some documents..."

"Sure. On Sunday."

"Listen, Spence... I know how you feel about this. And that's fine, I mean, he's married, so... I won't cross any boundaries in that sense. I know I said I liked him, but... That's it. I like him as a person, but not in a... _romantic_ sense. Okay?" she lied.

She knew she had to keep that a secret for now.

"Okay. Don't do bullshit." Spencer sighed.

"Yes, _mom_. Now I have to study a little, do you mind?"

"Of course. I'll see you tomorrow. Bye, Han."

"Bye, Spence."

She sighed and hung up. She didn't like lying to her friends, but she knew it was better to keep her relationship with Caleb secret for now.

She got up from her bed and went to the bathroom to remove her make up, and when she did, she smiled seeing two big hickeys printed on her neck.

Suddenly, her afternoon came back up to her mind. She had felt so good with Caleb that day. The way he had made love to her, the way he had looked at her for the whole time, the way he had held her after that —first in the tub and then in bed—, the way he had kissed her goodbye... He had been simply amazing with her. She ran her fingers over the signs of his mouth on her neck, sighing. She was trying to stop thinking that it was a wrong thing, she was trying to focus just on the fact that Caleb could make her feel like no one had ever done before, and she had decided that she was okay with that. He was a man, a great man, a man whom she liked so much, and she was tired of feeling guilty about that. So, the only thing she thought at that moment was that she couldn't wait to see Caleb again the next day.

And right then, her mobile beeped on the bathroom counter. It was him.

 _I haven't felt this way in a while. I'm in bed and I can't sleep because I'm thinking of you... What have you done to me, Hanna Marin? ;)_

Hanna smirked at that. She was happy that he felt that way too.

 _I hope nothing bad :P_ she simply typed back, not knowing what else to add. His reply came shortly after.

 _Don't think so ;) You don't know what I'd give to have you here with me right now... :(_

Hanna bit her lip thinking about what it would have been like being there with him right then. In his bed, held by his strong arms, surrounded by his scent... Their bodies joined as one, his sighs merging with hers filling his bedroom, his taste into her mouth... Hanna caught herself sexually daydreaming about him, and she had just had him a few hours earlier. She had this absurdly strong pull toward him that she didn't know it was passion or what. She just knew she wanted him so badly, in a way she had never wanted any man in her life. It was like a _need_. She was extremely attracted to him, both mentally and physically. There was a _connection_ between them.

 _Just wait a few hours and then we'll be together again :) can't wait to see u – and kiss u :)_ she typed back.

 _You're gonna make me die, girl. Can't wait for tomorrow. Sweet dreams, beautiful. Sleep tight xx_

At that, Hanna sighed like an idiot and climbed back on her bed. But she didn't close her eyes before replying to his text.

 _Goodnight, handsome... Thx again for today xx_

* * *

 **A/N: Hi everyone :) So, I know I've made you wait a little, but I hope this extra-long and intense chapter can make y'all forgive me ;) I literally can't wait to know your thoughts about this :D I hope it didn't come out too bad :P By the way, you guys keep surprising me with the number of views, follows, favorites and reviews for this story. Totally awesome. I'm so grateful for your support, I'm so glad you're enjoying it :) So, DarkHearted14, you asked me how I feel about the Haleb break up on the show... Look, honestly I didn't see it as a real break-up. It was just an argument to me. Yeah, obviously it didn't make me happy, but I know it's nothing too bad – you know, just thinking about Ravenswood, instead, still gives me chills remembering that horrible period... That was a break-up to me. An awful one. Plus, I confess you something: I prefer Haleb to be shown, even if they're fighting, rather than not to be shown at all – like last Tuesday's episode. Plus we know we're gonna get some Haleb scenes in next episode, so, yeah, I'm pretty optimistic about that :) Well, so... If you want, and if you do it'll be really appreciated, write whatever crossed your mind while reading this chapter in a review :) I accept negative opinions as well, of course :P Can't wait to read you guys! Thank you so much for reading, until next time :) Much love! xx -Atramea.**


	9. Chapter 9

Hanna could barely recognize herself by now. She had left earlier her last class of the day to be able to get to work a little earlier as well. She had made up a lame excuse for her friends to hop into her car and speed up toward the studio. She needed to see Caleb, and she needed no one else in the studio with them.

She knew that Caleb came rather early there, before anyone, to get changed into his dentist clothes and settle the last things for the daily appointments. She pulled up into her usual parking lot and saw her reflection into her rear-view mirror before getting out of the car and walking to the entrance of the studio.

Everything seemed quiet. However, she had seen Caleb's car parked outside and the door was already unlocked, clear signs that he was already in there. She looked down the short hallway, certifying that no one was there. Then, after taking a deep breath, she slowly pushed open the door of Caleb's studio. A smile crossed her face noticing him. He was already dressed in his work clothes, and he had his back turned at her because he was getting some mouthwash ready near the small sink which was next to the patient seat. She found him sexy even dressed like that, with that dark green bandana he used to make sure his hair didn't fall over his face while working. She, instead, was wearing a cute white shirt with a black cardigan, and a short black skirt. She had even put some heels on, even if they weren't too high. The truth was that she wasn't used to heels, but she wanted to look flawless and sexy for him that day.

"Mind if I come in?" she finally blurted out, leaning by the doorway.

Caleb quickly turned around, smirking. He crossed his arms over his chest as he scanned her from head to toe.

"You're welcome." he grinned.

She slowly made her way into the studio as Caleb watched her, absent-mindedly licking his lower lip. He had some serious problems to move his eyes away from her cleavage and those smooth legs of hers, however he managed to eventually focus on her eyes.

"You're early." he commented, still with his arms crossed over his chest.

"Yes, I am. Is that a problem?" Hanna asked, approaching him.

Caleb raised his eyebrows.

"Absolutely not." he replied then.

Hanna grinned and leaned in, placing a firm kiss on his lips. Caleb finally untied his arms and stretched them toward her, circling her waist as he deepened the kiss. Their tongues met once again, creating their usual passion battle. Hanna pulled away after a minute, running her hands over his chest.

"I don't want to sound like a desperate cheesy teenager, but... I kinda missed you." she whispered, a few inches from his face.

Caleb smiled and moved a strand of her blonde hair away from her face.

"Well, I missed you too. Does this make me a desperate cheesy teenager too?" he asked.

"Uhm... I don't think so." Hanna smiled, before restarting to kiss him.

Caleb really didn't know what would have happened after that if they hadn't heard someone coming in. He immediately pulled away just in time to see Lea, one of his assistants, walking down the hallway.

"Good morning, doc. Morning, Hanna." she smiled at them, stopping on the doorway.

"Lea, good morning." Caleb smiled widely.

"Morning." Hanna added awkwardly.

Then, the woman walked past the hallway.

"Shit, that was close." Hanna muttered then under her breath.

"She never arrives so early. Anyway, we'd better be more careful, probably." he shrugged, sighing.

"Yeah, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have—"

"Don't be sorry, it's okay. I _really_ appreciated your good morning." he cut her off, grinning.

Hanna smiled back as Lea got into the studio again, ready to help Caleb. Hanna knew she had to go to her office then.

"Well, then... I think I can set everything up in half an hour, so... You can come to take your agenda as soon as you got a minute, doctor." she said, sounding professional.

Caleb raised an eyebrow at her and held back a chuckle.

"Uhm, sure. Thank you, Hanna. I'll stop by your office later." he replied then, nodding quickly.

"Yeah. Have a good work." she concluded, smiling over at Lea and then exiting the studio.

"She works a lot. She's a nice girl, isn't she?" Lea asked Caleb once Hanna was away.

"Yes... She really is." he nodded.

* * *

After visiting three patients, Caleb managed to take a break. He reached Hanna's office and got in, closing the door behind his back. Hanna looked up and smiled as soon as she saw him, still in his work clothes but without bandana and gloves, then furrowed her eyebrows noticing he was carrying a dish with a piece of chocolate cake.

"What's that?" she asked as he approached her desk.

"Mrs Tryder's son got married and she brought me some cake. Such a kind lady... I love my patients." he replied, placing the dish on her desk.

Hanna got up and went to kiss him.

"Wanna share?" Caleb asked then.

"I thought you were here just to take your agenda, doctor." she smirked.

He just smiled at that, then collapsed on her chair before pulling her on his lap. Hanna widened her eyes at him.

"Didn't you say we needed to be more careful?" she whispered.

"I did?" he joked.

Then, he reached out on her desk and took the dish.

"I guess everyone knocks before coming in, so... We're being careful." he shrugged then.

Hanna chuckled slightly, then Caleb took a piece of cake and ate it.

"It's good." he commented then.

He turned to Hanna and fed her another piece, focusing on her pink lips.

"Yeah, it's good." she confirmed.

They shared the piece of cake until the dish was empty, then Caleb started laughing.

"What?" she asked confused.

"You have chocolate all over your lips." he grinned.

Hanna immediately licked her lips to wipe them, then noticed Caleb had some chocolate on his lower lip too. She reached out and wiped it away with her index, tracing the shape of his lip, then showed it to him.

"Looks like I'm not the only one, though." she smirked.

Caleb smirked as well, then caught Hanna off guard when he circled her finger with his lips and licked the chocolate away before releasing it. She locked eyes with him and suddenly decided there was another way to wipe both of their mouths from the chocolate, so she leaned in and kissed him. Caleb felt her hot tongue enter and then explore his mouth, and he didn't hesitate to return the passion. He pulled her closer pulling at her legs until she was completely straddling him, as she roamed her hands through his short hair.

Caleb suddenly got up, bringing Hanna with him, and walked to the edge of her desk. He made her sit down and placed himself in between her legs, then he kept kissing her while making some room on the desk to lie her down. Hanna pulled away and flashed him a look.

"Should we stop?" she mumbled, as he kept kissing her.

"I don't know... Do you wanna stop?" he mumbled back, knowing that the first purpose she had like an hour earlier when she had come earlier to work was exactly _that_.

Hanna bit her lower lip thinking about his question, as his lips went to her neck.

"Not really..." she whispered, as she slowly lied down on her desk.

He kept kissing her neck and she closed her eyes, enjoying the feeling and trying not to think about the fact they were in their work place with all the wagers in. Actually, the whole sneaky thing really turned her on. His hands soon found their way under her skirt, stroking the soft skin of her thighs before pulling it up around her waist. Then, he lifted his head and looked at her flushed face, biting his lip, before looking at the door. Hanna looked up at him.

"Caleb, we don't have much time... Please." she mumbled.

Caleb was actually a little torn about doing what they were about to do or not, but as soon as he turned back to her and saw her, he felt sure, so he just nodded.

"Try not to be... _loud_ , okay?" he asked, as a part of himself prayed no one would come anywhere near that office.

She smiled reassuringly at him and nodded before pulling him back down to her.

* * *

"Get out of here now, doctor. Break is over." she whispered, winking at him.

They had managed to be quick and quiet enough. Caleb was still fixing his clothes, while Hanna was tidying her desk, already sitting back on her chair. He quickly turned to her and chuckled slightly, taking another look at the desk where they had just fucked. Then, he came closer to her and bent down to kiss her cheek.

"I'll see you later." he whispered then, grinning.

She grinned back to him and handed him the empty dish. He took it and looked at her one last time before turning around and exiting her office, biting his lower lip and shaking his head.

That girl would be the death of him.

He almost felt _addicted_ to her. She had been on his mind from the first day he had seen her, and from the first night she came to his house, he knew she had become an obsession...a nice one. And those last two days had been the confirmation. Dammit, she was _very_ nice.

Never in a million years he would have thought that a man professional and estemeed like him would have fucked his secretary in his work place, right on the office desk.

 _What the hell is she doing to me?_ he whispered to himself, smirking as he came back to the studio to restart working.

However, when work was done, they rushed to Caleb's house and made love again, in his bed. They literally couldn't have enough of each other. Hanna then realized it was late and that she needed to get home before her mom would start to freak out.

She got back dressed, and Caleb watched her from where he was lying on his bed, between the messy sheets. He was lying on his stomach, with his cheek smashed against the pillow, studying that perfect tiny body of hers like it was the first time he saw it.

"Okay, I'd better go now. I'll see you tomorrow at work, okay?" she said when she was fully dressed.

Caleb gave her a lazy smile and nodded slightly.

"Hey, try to keep yourself free for next Sunday, alright? I want to spend the whole day with you. So, if you also manage to spend the night away from home, so that you can stay here for the night, I promise you're gonna get a _perfect_ day." he said then.

Hanna smiled curiously at him and raised an eyebrow.

"What are we gonna do?" she asked.

"That's a surprise... I can't tell you."

Hanna pursed her lips and bent down, kissing his lips softly.

"Can't wait to find out. See you tomorrow." she whispered.

"Wait, I'll walk you to your car..."

Hanna laughed slightly and stopped him from getting up.

"Don't worry, okay? It's true that you live in the middle of nowhere, but I prefer you not to go outside if you're naked." she suggested.

Caleb smirked.

"Okay then. But give me a ring when you get home." he whispered then.

Hanna smiled at his concern and nodded, then she turned around and made her way outside followed by Caleb's amused gaze.

He sighed, turning his body between the sheets. He'd never thought it was possible for him to be so much into someone else after the way his marriage had failed, nevertheless... There he was. Smiling at himself like a perfect idiot because of Hanna freaking Marin.

* * *

 **A/N: Hi everyone :) First of all, you're like the best reviewers ever ;) I seriously enjoyed a lot the things you wrote me and also laughed a lot reading some of you :D Also, I apologize in advance to HalebForever because she said she dies between updates, so I hope she's still alive to let me know what she thinks about this chapter because I obviously wanna know it :P Seriously though, I'm very happy you all are showing so much interest on this story. I was very doubtful before starting to publish it, and I didn't imagine you guys would like it so much, so... I'm really really happy about it :) Thank you everyone :) For those who asked for Hanna's friends, just be a little patient, they're gonna be back soon ;) Sooo... What about this chapter? I know, nothing extraordinary happened, it was kind of a filler, but I wanted to remark that they're very attracted to each other :P – who wouldn't be attracted by Caleb btw? xD – and I hope you appreciated some more hot Haleb after last chapter :D Anyway, I'm also going to update my other fic very soon as well, promise, the chap's ready ;) Oh, for the guest who asked me if I knew Ty was in Positano... Yes, I did, but unfortunately I don't live really close to that zone :( not even too far, I use like two hour and an half by car to get there, but then he also went to Capri, which is an island in that same zone, and to get there you need to take the ferry so, yeah... Let's say I could't just go and look for him...much to my dismay, yeah :( I really don't know what I would do if I actually met him! xD However, I hope he liked Italy and I hope he will come back soon, maybe somewhere closer to me :P Anyway... Once again, a huge thank you to each one of you :) keep up your support, it really means a lot :):) Can't wait to read your reviews! Love you all :) xx -Atramea.**


	10. Chapter 10

The week went by quickly.

Hanna went to college and then to work every day until Saturday. She and Caleb decided not to do _some kind of things_ in the studio again after Monday, to be careful. They managed to wait until work was over, at least.

She hadn't managed to convince her mom to let her sleep at one of her friends' —the most trivial excuse to spend the night at Caleb's, obviously— on Sunday night, because the next day she had college, but she had managed to convince her mom for a Saturday night, instead. She had told Caleb, who had said that they would spend the whole Saturday together instead of a Sunday. He had no problem with that little change of plans.

However, Hanna needed one of her friends to cover for her for that Saturday, otherwise her mom would find out the truth soon, since she had already made a mess the previous Saturday night, when she hadn't come back home until the next morning, right because she was with Caleb at his place. She knew that her mom needed to be sure that time. She also knew that Spencer was the most suspicious about her and Caleb, so she decided to ask Aria. She was gonna tell her she was going to spend the night with a guy, she was probably gonna mention Holden again, so that when Spencer was gonna know, maybe she could believe she was with him and not with Caleb... Maybe.

She hated that she had to lie to her friends, but for now she wanted to protect her relationship with Caleb. It was clearly difficult to understand, also without knowing that he was no longer together with his wife, so Hanna had just decided that lying about him was the best thing to do at the moment.

Aria had told her there was no problem about the cover up, seeming to believe she had to see Holden. So, on Saturday morning, Hanna exited her house smiling widely, knowing she was gonna spend the whole day with Caleb, with her mom quiet and sure that she was going to spend the day with her friends.

* * *

As soon as Hanna got out of her car, in which she had an overnight bag, in front of Caleb's house, Charlie ran to her and gave her his usual welcome, then Caleb appeared behind the front door, smirking. Hanna walked to him smiling as well, and when she was close enough, he pulled her closer and kissed her eagerly.

"Good morning to you too." she giggled when they pulled away.

Caleb smiled and placed a strand of her hair behind her left ear.

"Good morning. C'mon, come inside, I made breakfast." he said then, nodding toward his kitchen.

She followed him inside until they got in the kitchen, where the table was filled of a lot of things to eat: biscuits, pancakes, eggs, bacon, milk, coffee, orange juice... Just everything. He told her to have a seat and they had breakfast together. The food was absolutely good, Caleb was even a great cook. After breakfast, he went to get dressed as Hanna waited for him in the garden, playing with Charlie. When he was done, he got to her and they got into his car, taking Charlie with them.

"Where are we going?" Hanna asked curiously.

Caleb smiled and put on his Ray-Ban sunglasses before pulling out of his driveway.

"I'm going to take you where I usually go on Saturdays with Charlie. I'm sure you will like it." he told her.

"Okay."

Caleb drove until they were a few miles out of town. They parked in a green area, a large countryside.

"We're here." he told her, opening his door.

Hanna raised her eyebrows and then waited for him to get out of the car to open her door as well, like he always did when they went somewhere together with his car. Then, closed both of their doors, Caleb opened the trunk and Charlie jumped out of there, immediately starting to run through the grass.

"We're gonna have to walk a little, but I promise you won't be disappointed." he added, flashing her a smile.

Hanna smiled, she trusted him. Caleb put the leash to Charlie, then he wrapped his free arm around her shoulders and started walking with her after placing a kiss on her temple. As they went on, Hanna started seeing how that place looked beautiful. There were a lot of flowers, a lot of trees, and the air was totally pure, clearly different from the air of town. It was sunny, and it was also hot, but there was a little of wind so that it was really a perfect day to spend outside. Caleb also stopped walking at some point, bending down just to pick a beautiful flower from the ground. He placed it between Hanna's right ear and her hair, as she smiled lovingly at him. Then, they restarted walking in the middle of that wonderful place.

"You take Charlie here every weekend?" she asked as they kept walking.

"Yeah, at least when it's not raining." he replied, his arm still hooked around her shoulders.

"He's a lucky dog to have you." she smiled.

"I'm lucky to have him too. You know, he's my only friend. I've always wanted a dog, but Melissa absolutely didn't. She just didn't like animals, at all. Actually, she hated them. So I couldn't have him when we got married and moved to my current place. But when she left... Well, I took him because I wanted a dog, clearly, and also because I didn't want to be alone. And he's seriously been keeping me company for all these months. He's so much more than a dog to me, he's my bestfriend."

Hanna smiled at him and squeezed the hand he had over her shoulder.

"You have such a big heart." she commented.

Caleb smiled and kissed her forehead.

"C'mon, we're almost there." he added then.

A few steps later, they arrived to a cliff from where you could see the lake. The view was simply amazing.

"Wow." Hanna commented, admiring the view.

"You like?"

"It's wonderful, Caleb..."

"Let's descend, c'mon." he smiled.

They took a small path down the cliff and they finally reached the small shore near the lake. Once they got there, Caleb took the leash off Charlie and the dog happily ran all over the shore, occasionally jumping into the water too. Hanna laughed seeing how Charlie looked happy. Caleb then, came back to her, and sat on one of the rocks which were there. He gestured for her to sit in between her legs, and she did, leaning her back against his chest. He folded his hands over her stomach and rested his chin on her shoulder, as he watched Charlie enjoy the water. They stayed like that for a while, in a comfortable silence, then Caleb started drawing a long trail of small soft kisses all over the side of Hanna's neck, making her close her eyes and throw her head back. At some point, she turned her head to him and crashed her lips on his, kissing him. Caleb kept her head in place cupping her cheek, and he slid his tongue into her mouth. They kissed for a couple of minutes before Hanna pulled away and smiled softly at him. He moved a few strands of her hair off her face and returned the smile.

"Can I ask you something?" she whispered.

"Anything."

"Have you really been all alone for all of these months?"

He took a deep breath before replying.

"Yeah. What, you don't believe me?"

Hanna shook her head quickly.

"No, no... I believe you. It's just that... It's strange. I mean, you're like the perfect man... Why didn't any woman want you?" she continued.

Caleb chuckled and raised an eyebrow.

"The perfect man, huh?" he asked.

Hanna laughed slightly but waited for him to continue, and he did, becoming serious.

"Look, Hanna... It's true that after Melissa I had no one, besides you. It's not like I didn't have any chance, because I did, plenty times, but I don't like to take a woman home with me just to comfort myself, alleviate the pain or have a night of fun. It's not my thing, seriously. If I'm with a woman, it's not because I want to play. It's not because I want to satisfy my sexual needs. It's not because it can comfort myself. Hanna, if I'm with a woman, it's because I want to be with her. That's why I haven't been with anyone for all this time, and that's why I'm here with you right now."

Hanna blushed and smiled widely at his words. God, that man was such a sweetheart. The perfect man, indeed. A man who had clearly suffered a lot, because someone whom he had loved had broken his heart. Maybe that's why he could give all of that love to the other people now. She was experiencing that, she could clearly feel it.

She didn't reply but placed another soft kiss on his lips and then leaned back into his embrace, as he tightened his grasp around her waist.

"Caleb?" she whispered after a few minutes.

"Yes?"

"I want to be with you too."

He smiled and kissed the top of her head.

"Good to know." he replied then.

* * *

After spending a few relaxing hours at the lake, Caleb and Hanna came back to his car with Charlie and returned to his place. Charlie stayed outiside and the pair got into the house. Caleb cooked a fabulous lunch, all Italian food, of course accompanying everything with a classy red wine. They ate taking their time, he loaded the dishwasher and then they climbed on his couch to watch a movie. He gently kept his arm around her shoulders for the whole time, and they both ended up asleep halfway through the movie, Hanna resting her head on his shoulder and her legs half-sprawled on his lap while his head lied on top of hers and his free hand was placed firmly on one of her thighs.

She woke up first. She didn't know how long they had been sleeping, but the TV screen was completely black and the DVD player had gone in standby. She looked up at him with narrowed eyes, finding him asleep. She smiled at his cuteness and placed a small kiss on his cheek, which made him wake up too.

"Hey, sorry... I didn't mean to wake you up..." she whispered as he opened his eyes.

He yawned and then smiled down at her.

"It's okay... How long have I slept?" he asked then.

"I don't know. I just woke up too, actually."

Caleb stretched himself as Hanna pulled her legs off him, then he leaned toward the coffee table to look at his mobile, to check the time.

"It's half past five. Wow, we took such a nap." he laughed slightly.

Hanna widened her eyes at his reply.

"Shit." she commented.

"Don't worry, this means that we're not gonna be too tired for tonight..." he smirked teasingly.

Hanna smirked back as he leaned back on the couch and kissed her.

"Would you like some wine?" he asked then.

"Sure." she replied.

Caleb got up and went to the kitchen, coming back with a bottle of wine and two glasses. He filled both of them and handed her one, and she accepted it.

"So... What do you want to do now?" he asked.

Hanna drank a little, then pursed her lips before replying.

"I don't know. It's okay as long as I'm with you."

Caleb smiled and took a long sip from his glass.

"I was thinking about taking you out for dinner, how does it sound to you?" he asked then.

"You mean in a restaurant or something?" she widened her eyes.

"Yeah. A classy place."

"But... I thought it was better not to show up together in public..."

"That's true, but if we go out of town I guess it won't be a problem, right?"

"Oh... Yeah, right."

"I don't want us to hide for tonight... Tonight is ours."

Hanna looked at him from the border of her glass and smiled softly. She didn't like to hide either, but they knew it was better to at the moment.

"Sounds good." she added.

Caleb returned the smile.

"But let's not go to a place too classy, okay? I don't have the right clothes now." she punctualized.

He laughed and placed his empty glass on the coffee table.

"You're gorgeous like this, trust me." he commented, taking a quick look to her cute short navy blue dress.

"Oh, stop being such a gentleman..." Hanna muttered, blushing.

"What, you don't like it? Plus, I'm just saying the truth." he smirked, raising his eyebrows.

She giggled and placed her empty glass on the coffee table too before coming closer to him, as he wrapped his arm around her shoulders again.

"I like it, by the way. I like _you_." she whispered as she made herself comfortable on his chest.

He chuckled and kissed her forehead, stroking her hair. Then, Hanna noticed what looked like a photo album in the bookshelf and made a little smile.

"Is that a photo album?" she asked, nodding toward it.

Caleb looked up to where she was pointing at.

"Yeah." he replied.

Hanna lifted her head and raised her eyebrows at him.

"Can we...?" she teased, excited about the idea of seeing Caleb as a kid.

He bit his lip, looking away. Hanna was a little confused.

"Oh, wait... Is that your wedding photo album? she asked then.

Caleb sighed before replying.

"No, it's not. It's just a... A normal photo album."

Hanna suddenly remembered that his parents had died and cursed herself. Maybe he didn't want to look at their pictures.

"Oh, okay... It's fine, we don't need to look at it." she said then.

Caleb scratched his head and smiled down at her.

"No, you know what? Go get it, we're gonna take a look." he said then.

"Caleb—" she tried to reply to assure him it was fine, but he stopped her.

"Hanna. Take it."

Hanna gave him a small smile and got up from the couch, walking to the bookshelf as he turned the TV off. She returned to him with the album under her arm and sat down next to him.

"Don't be so scared... I was sexy even when I was little." he joked to lighten up the mood.

Hanna smiled and then bit her lip, looking down at the closed album.

"You don't need to do this just because I asked you." she murmured them, looking back at him.

He stroked her cheek and smiled at her.

"I know. But it's okay." he whispered then.

"Okay." she echoed, before opening the album.

The first page was full of pictures of baby Caleb. Hanna couldn't help but smile at how cute he was.

"These pictures are like thirty-two years old, you know that, right?" he asked, chuckling while looking at his old pictures.

"I know. And you were totally adorable...and _blonde_?" she asked then, furrowing an eyebrow as she kept looking through the pages.

"Definitely. I was blonde just like you. I don't know what happened next." he shrugged.

Then, finally, a woman appeared with baby Caleb between her arms, and Hanna looked up at him without saying anything.

"That's her. That's my mom, Claudia." he told her, smiling sadly.

"She was very beautiful." Hanna commented sincerely.

"Yeah, I know. And this...is my dad, Jamie." he replied, pointing to another picture where there was a man too.

Hanna widened her eyes seeing him.

"He looks exactly like you." she whispered then.

"You think?" Caleb smiled.

"Absolutely."

They kept looking at the pictures until Hanna stopped where there was one where Caleb was in front of his eighth birthday cake and his parents were kissing each one of his cheeks. He had a huge smile on his face and all the three looked totally happy. He sighed deeply at the sight of that picture and Hanna looked up at him.

"They left me exactly eight years later. The day of my sixteenth birthday. I still can't realize I lived half of my life without them." he murmured.

Hanna closed the photo album and placed it on the coffee table before turning back to him.

"Do you wanna talk about it? Look, I don't wanna press you or anything, and if you don't want to talk I totally understand, but... If you think it could make you feel even just a little better, well... I'm here." she told him, looking straight into his eyes.

Caleb held both of her hands in his and stayed a few seconds silent before speaking.

"I wanted to make my birthday party in a pub, that year. All of my friends were doing that, and I wanted to do that too. Both my mom and dad agreed, even if it took a little to convince them. They were scared I was going to get drunk or something. Anyway, I chose a pub which wasn't in town, though, so I needed to get there by car, but I didn't have the driver license yet. So, my dad had to drive me there and...pick me up as well. You know, my mom didn't like to stay home alone, she never wanted to, so... She came with us, so both my parents drove me to the pub. I had this huge party and everything, and I enjoyed myself a lot, and then... Then they came to pick me up. I... I couldn't stop talking while we were on our way home. I told them how much fun I had had, how cool my friends had been, and... My father got distraught by all my stupid rants. I don't really remember what happened. But... Apparently, he didn't see another car, he was talking to me, and he didn't turn the fucking wheel in time, and..."

He lowered his head and put his hands on his face, breathing out deeply. He was clearly crying, silently, but he was. Hanna bit hard her lower lip and cupped his face, without forcing him to look up. She just stroked his cheeks and placed her forehead against the top of his head, trying to comfort him as she could.

"If I hadn't made the party in a pub out of town, if I hadn't talked so much while we were in the car, if I had already taken the driver license...that would have never happened." he murmured, returning to look at her, this time with puffy eyes.

Hanna then, hugged him the tightest she could, as he returned the hug.

"It wasn't your fault, Caleb. These things happen, and it's nobody's fault..." she whispered, stroking the back of his head.

"I was in that fucking car too, why didn't I die? Why did they die and I didn't? Why?" he mumbled.

Hanna didn't know what else to say. They just stayed like that for a little while before Caleb pulled away, still with puffy eyes. She had never seen him cry, clearly, and that really touched her.

"I'm sorry." he murmured, feeling ashamed.

"Don't be, Caleb. Only strong men have the guts to cry. And you have all the right too." she replied, wiping his last tear away.

He furrowed an eyebrow noticing a tear on her cheek too, then he reached out and wiped it away as well.

"I didn't mean to make you cry too, though." he whispered.

"It's fine, don't worry. I'm just really emotional." she shrugged, smiling slightly.

Caleb sighed and took her hands again.

"You know... My parents had always wanted me to become a dentist. I wanted it too, but my problem was that I didn't like to study, at all. But after what happened, I decided that I wanted to make them proud of me. I worked really hard to get where I am now. And my parents have been my strength." he continued.

Hanna smiled at him.

"They would totally be proud of you. You know what, I'm sure they _are_ proud of you. You're such a great man, with a big heart and a big soul. Every parent would like to have a son like you." she told him.

He just smiled at her, then she asked him something.

"Did you get totally uninjured from the crash?"

Caleb pursed his lips before letting go of her hands to lift the hem of his shirt.

"I don't know if you already noticed it, but I have this scar, right here." he said, pointing to his side, near his waist.

Hanna looked there and finally noticed it.

"I think I missed it." she mumbled, a little awkwardly thinking at the several times she had had the chance to see that scar.

"A metal sheet of our car got stuck into my side and almost pierced me. My parents died on impact because they were sitting in the front, but I was lucky. I was rescued and immediately taken to the hospital. The doctors told me it had been a miracle that the metal sheet hadn't hurt any of my vital organs. I stayed in hospital for a little while, but my side wasn't what actually hurt me. It was everything else. The real pain was not physical, clearly." he explained her.

"Where did you go after that? Who did you stay with?"

"Uncle Dan, my dad's stepbrother. He basically didn't know me, but he was the closest parent I had. He still is, I guess. But as soon as I graduated, I went to college and I never saw him again. He just did what he had to, give me an house for the period I've been under his conservation. That was all I needed and asked for. I just wanted to become a dentist, that was my goal. I didn't need a new dad or a new mom or anything like that. So, when high school was over, I knew I wanted to do everything on my own. And I guess I did. It was hard, but I made it." he shrugged.

"The more I get to know you, the more you impress me by the extraordinary person you are." she said seriously.

He smiled at her.

"So... Try not to piss your mom off, alright? She loves you and she's right to get this worried for you. This world sucks and you're lucky to have her." he added.

Hanna laughed slightly and nodded.

"Anyway, I'm sorry I asked you all of these questions, but... I really appreciated that you opened up to me about something like this. I know it wasn't easy for you." she added, becoming serious again.

"It's all part of my life, Hanna. And I want you to be part of my life too." he replied, locking eyes with her.

She smiled, then she slowly leaned in and kissed him.

"That'd be an honor." she whispered after that.

* * *

 **A/N: Hey guys! So I'm back with a long, Caleb-centric, deep chapter :) I think this is one of my faves, and I hope everyone of you who wanted Caleb to open up with Hanna is now happy ;) Did you like their day together? Honestly, it was hard to write, especially the part where he talks about his parents' death —anyway I confess you that I totally love exploring Caleb's feelings and thoughts—, but I hope it came out good. Obviously, you guys will have to tell me this :) As usual, thank you to everyone who reviewed. It's always a pleasure to hear from you, and I'm really happy you keep enjoying this story, also because it's being really hard for me to write, but on the other hand, I'm enjoying it too :) So, that's all for now. Next chapter will start from where we left here, I didn't forget their dinner, don't worry :P I'd really like to know what you guys think, as usual, but I particularly care about this one, so let me know, alright? ;) I'll be waiting :) Also, my other story will be updated between today and tomorrow. I'm going to try to update both of my current ffs together, so that no one of you will be disappointed if they prefer one over the other :) Again, thanks for reading and for your amazing support! You're the best :) Have a good day everyone :) Love! xx -Atramea.**


	11. Chapter 11

After a little while, Caleb told Hanna it was time to go, so he went to give Charlie some food before they both got into his car. He drove for a good half an hour, reaching another small town. They pulled up in a quiet driveway that led them to a nice restaurant. He got out of the car and went to open the door for Hanna, then he led her inside the restaurant with his hand protectively placed on her small back.

He had told her he knew the owner of the place and some of his workers, not in a friendly way, but he knew they were nice people. It wasn't the first time he went there, but it was the first time he went there with someone and not just to have something to drink at the counter, alone. He liked going outside of his town once in a while, because people didn't look at him like 'the dentist'. They looked at him like a normal man. And that place had become the place where he went when he needed time for himself outside of his daily routine.

"Caleb, welcome back." a young waiter smiled as he made his way inside with Hanna.

"Hi, Derek. Is there a table for two on the roof?" Caleb asked, smiling back kindly.

"I need to check, but I think there is. If you and your guest don't mind to wait a minute, I'm going to take a look."

"Of course, we'll be here."

The waiter excused himself and walked toward a staircase in the middle of the large room, while Caleb suggested to Hanna to sit on a small couch while waiting.

"You like here?" he asked.

"Yeah, it's fancy. I mean, not too much... Let's say the right amount." she replied, looking around herself.

"I told you."

"Why have you been coming here, though? I mean, it's a great place, but there are plenty nice restaurants in our town... Why you're used to this place instead?"

He shrugged slightly.

"I like being in the middle of people who don't know me, sometimes. I just need to isolate myself once in a while, but not being alone at the same time. I don't know, it's like I'm not the dentist here, I'm just a man like every man. And tonight, I can be a simple man with a gorgeous girl by his side without being seen like the dentist with his young secretary...as if it was a _scandalous_ thing." he murmured then, shaking his head at his last words.

Hanna gave him a small smile and held his hand.

"Hey, it's nothing scandalous. People can think whatever they want, but I don't give a shit about that. We agreed this isn't anything wrong, right?" she whispered.

Caleb turned his head to look at her, straight into her beautiful blue eyes and nodded, holding her hand as well.

"Right. And tonight we're free to act the fucking way we want to." he smiled reassuringly at her.

At that, Hanna leaned in and placed a soft and gentle kiss on his lips. That was the very first kiss they had shared with other people around. He smiled at her and rubbed her cheek, and they both didn't notice that the waiter had come back.

"Caleb?" he announced himself.

Caleb looked up at him, still holding Hanna's hand.

"Yes?" he replied.

"There's just one table for two, on the very back of the roof. I guess you guys are lucky, that's the table with the greatest view."

Caleb nodded and smiled at him, standing up with Hanna.

"Amazing. Thank you, Derek." he told him then.

"You're welcome. Please, follow me."

Caleb interlaced his fingers with Hanna's as they made their way upstairs and then outside, on the roof of the restaurant. It was a great night, there were a lot of stars and the moon was huge and bright. They took their seats and then the waiter came back inside, leaving them some time to look at the menu.

* * *

They had a great time. They ate really good food, obviously choosing the most expensive red wine as a beverage, and looked at the sky full of stars while eating. They could held each other's hand over the table and even kiss without worrying about the other people.

Hanna felt amazing, she had an amazing night with him. As the time went by, she realized she liked Caleb more and more, despite all the restrains she had about him at first. She was so glad she had let herself go as he had asked her to do, because she had found a kind man, but most of all a wonderful person.

And then they got home.

They knew they could finally spend the whole night together, until the next morning. However, as soon as Caleb closed the front door behind their backs, they didn't waste a second. He approached her and his lips were immediately all over hers, and she backed until her back was pressed against the wall. They kept kissing, their tongues fighting for dominance, and Hanna took off Caleb's jacket in the meanwhile. He moved his head to her neck, sucking on her pulsepoint, and she lost control of herself for a moment. She didn't know why, but whenever she felt his lips on her neck she just went in ecstasy, she couldn't help it. She gripped his hair and moaned, closing her eyes shut and throwing her head back against the wall, making a light thund. His hands went to her smooth legs, left exposed by her short dress, travelling through every inch of her skin until he reached her asscheeks. He gripped them and pushed himself against her centre as he kept sucking on her neck. Hanna sighed as she felt the urge of having him inside of her. She jumped on him, wrapping her legs around his waist and her arms behind his neck.

"Take me upstairs..." she whispered in his ear.

He let out a groan hearing the arousal in her voice, then his mouth left the skin of her neck and returned to kiss her lips, as he made his way upstairs carrying her. They stumbled to the bedroom, without breaking their kiss, and Caleb laid her down on his bed. He kneeled in front of her body, taking off his shirt, then he tossed it away and lowered his body on hers, kissing her again. He took the hem of her dress and pulled it up, until it could go over Hanna's head. She helped him remove it, and he tossed it away like he had done with his shirt. She was wearing a set of light blue lacy underwear and bra, and Caleb admired her for a moment before bending down to kiss her once again. Hanna pushed herself up with her elbows and then overturned the situation, making him lie on the mattress. She went to work on his belt, unbuckling it, and then unbuttoned his jeans, slipping them down to his ankles. Caleb kicked them off along with his shoes as he unhooked her bra, and then once again inverted their positions, going on top of her and throwing her bra away.

"You're so beautiful..." he whispered as he kissed her collarbone.

Hanna smiled as she guided his head with her hands. He stopped on her breasts, slightly biting one of her nipples, making her moan. She could feel his hardness pressed against her centre, and his tongue doing amazing things to her breasts wasn't doing anything but making her want him even more badly. Her hands left their grasp through his hair and slid down his toned back, eventually going to his sides, then she hooked her thumbs into his boxers and pushed them down. Caleb groaned feeling the head of his cock come in direct contact with the skin of her lower belly. Hanna took his head in between her hands and forced him to look up at her.

"Caleb... I need you..." she pleaded.

He bit his bottom lip at her words and nodded slightly. He lifted himself so that he was once again kneeling on the mattress and took off his boxers for good before removing Hanna's panties as well. His eyes lightened up at the sight of her fully naked and his arousal grew even more. Hanna smiled up at him and placed her hands on his hips, pushing him down on top of her. She kissed him and slowly opened her legs as she did so, and Caleb positioned himself between them. He pulled away from the kiss and reached out for the drawer of the nightstand, quickly grabbing a condom and putting it on. Then, he captured her mouth in his again and placed his hands on her hips, sliding into her with just one strong thrust. Hanna parted the kiss to moan, then he grabbed both of her legs and lifted them from the mattress, placing each of them on either of his shoulders to get a new angle. Then he restarted thrusting, harder. She gripped his hair and closed her eyes, enjoying the feeling of their bodies joined as one. He opened his eyes and looked down at her, placing his forehead against hers before kissing her again, hard, muffling her moans with his tongue into her mouth. His hips kept moving with an energic pace, but not too quickly since he didn't want to come too soon. Then he kissed down her jawline, reaching her neck, her collarbone until his lips met her breast again, circling her nipple. He traced it with his tongue and Hanna threw her head back into the pillow, arching her back, and that move allowed Caleb to hit her even deeper, causing both of them to moan simultaneously. He stopped for a second, enjoying the deepness just found, and she took that moment to roll him over, sitting on top of him. She looked down at him, roaming an hand through his hair before pushing herself forward.

"Holy shit, Hanna..." he groaned, gripping her hips so that his thumbs were firmly pressed on her hipbones and the rest of his fingers were hanging over her asscheeks.

She placed her hands on each of his shoulders and restarted rocking herself on his body, as he pushed himself upwards into her as well. They found a perfect synchrony. Caleb gripped her ass tighter as he guided her movements, never breaking eye-contact with her. They were both panting and flushed, but they both wanted to keep their eyes open to look at each other while sharing the intimacy of that moment. At some point, Hanna suddenly slowed down and Caleb felt her inner walls start clenching around his cock. He immediately overturned the situation, pushing her down on the mattress and lying on top of her, and gripped the headboard, kissing from her neck to her right shoulder. Then, he pushed himself into her with a sharp move. Hanna gripped his shoulders as he kept pouning himself inside. The pace now was way rougher, they both needed their release. He stayed close to her, with his head on her shoulder as he plunged into her.

"Caleb..." she moaned.

He sucked on her neck and quickened the pace, trying to go as deep as possible, and Hanna finally felt a firework explode in the point they were joined.

"Caleb!" she moaned again, this time more like a scream.

When he felt her walls become tighter than a fissure, he bit hard on her shoulder and tried to hold back his load for a moment, wanting the ecstatic feeling to last the longest possible, but he couldn't do much. He felt a wave of pleasure make his whole body shake, and he finally let it go. His animalistic groan was muffled against her skin as his orgasm took him away. Hanna felt his member throb into her, along with the weird feeling of heat inside of her from her own orgasm. Caleb collapsed on her and left his grasp from the headboard of the bed. He was still buried deep inside of her and he didn't have strength to lift himself off her or doing anything else but trying to catch his breath. They both breathed in and out, deeply, feeling their muscles gradually stopping to twitch. After a good couple of minutes, Caleb pulled himself up with his elbows and then slowly slid outside of her, sighing as he did so. He rolled over and fell back on the mattress on his back, next to her, and then disposed of the condom. Hanna turned her head slightly and look into his eyes, giving him a soft smile. He breathed out once again before returning it. Then, Caleb grabbed the blankets and lifted them, suggesting Hanna to get in with a nod. When she was done, he joined her and fixed them so that their bodies were almost fully covered by them. Hanna lied on her side and he did the same, facing her. He placed a strand of her hair behind her ear and smiled before hugging her body under the sheets. She returned the hug, loving the feeling of the warmth of his body.

"I'm glad I can sleep here with you tonight." she murmured.

He kissed the top of her head.

"So am I." he added in a whisper.

"You were right... This was a perfect day."

"Really?"

"Yeah." she replied, looking up at him through her long eyelashes.

He smiled at her.

"I'm happy you feel this way. And I want you to have clear that you're not a distraction to me, Hanna. You're way more than that... I'm not here with you right now because I need _someone_. I'm here with you because I need _you_. You know that, right?" he asked, rubbing her bare back under the sheets.

"Yes, I know. You made it pretty clear today at the lake. I believe you, and I feel the same for you. As you're not trying to forget Melissa with me, you should know that I'm not trying to forget Sean with you either."

He nodded.

"Anyway... I'd never think I could be into a girl like this after her. Instead... Here I am. You have such an effect on me..." he told her seriously.

She smiled and blushed slightly.

"I kinda feel the same. Well... Maybe we just needed to find each other." she added.

He smiled back and nodded.

"Maybe it's like that, you're right." he said.

Then, she rolled over and lied on her other side, so that Caleb could spoon her. He wrapped an arm around her waist and buried his face through her long blonde hair. Then he felt her shiver, and he pulled away slightly.

"Hey, you cold?" he whispered.

"A little." Hanna admitted.

He moved on the mattress, reaching the edge of his side, then he reached out and picked his shirt from the floor. He returned near her and handed her his shirt.

"Here." he smiled.

Hanna smiled back and slipped into his grey shirt, impregnated of his cologne. It felt so nice. Then, she returned to her previous position and so did Caleb.

"Better?" he asked softly.

"Yes... Thank you."

"No problem."

"Goodnight, Caleb."

He kissed the back of her neck and tightened the grasp of his arm around her waist.

"Goodnight, beautiful." he whispered back then.

Hanna relaxed into a soft smile and closed her eyes, falling asleep into his shirt and between his arms.

* * *

Caleb woke up first.

There was a soft noise from outside. It was raining.

He opened his eyes, finding his own face drowned through Hanna's blonde locks. The good smell of his shampoo had filled his lungs by now. He lifted his head to glance at the alarm on the nightstand, which signed 8:04 am. He groaned slightly and let his head fall back onto the pillow, next to Hanna's.

His arm was still circling her hip, and she was still wearing his shirt. It was so large on her that covered her body until her midthighs. He slowly slipped his hand beneath that shirt, slightly brushing his fingers on her cold bare skin, as he drew a few kisses on the side of her neck. At that, Hanna started moving, stretching herself, and she absent-mindedly pushed her ass against his morning arousal, making him moan. She opened her eyes and blinked a couple of times before realizing who she was, where she was and who she was with. A smile crossed her face when she answered herself all of those questions, especially when she became fully aware of Caleb's hand and lips giving her a very appreciated good morning. She turned around and faced him, grinning.

"Hey..." he whispered, smiling back.

"Morning..." Hanna whispered back.

And then she leaned in to kiss him, cupping his face between her hands. Caleb immediately kissed back, closing a fist through her locks and pushing the back of her head onto his.

"What?" Hanna asked when they finally pulled away from their make-out session, since he was literally staring down at her.

"Nothing, just... You're beautiful. I just can't keep my eyes off you... And, well, my hands either." he replied, eventually chuckling.

Hanna laughed as she hid her face into the crook of his neck, inhaling deeply the smell of his skin. He closed her almost naked body into his strong arms and pressed a kiss through her hair.

"What time do you have to leave?" he asked in a whisper.

She groaned slightly.

"If I'm not home by half past ten, it's highly probable that my mom will send a search party." she muttered then.

Caleb laughed.

"Well, it's still a quarter past nine. You know, I would have liked to take a swim in the pool, but today's weather clearly doesn't agree." he commented.

"It's fine. We can just lie here until it's time for me to go."

He grinned and started stroking her hair softly.

"Okay. I think we can do that." he whispered then.

"What are you gonna do later?" Hanna asked.

"I think I'm gonna go jogging with Charlie. Then, this afternoon I think I need to mow the grass. And then I'm gonna go to the gym."

"Ooh, the dentist goes to the gym?" Hanna smirked.

Caleb grinned, still stroking her hair.

"Hey, where do you think these abs right here come from?" he teased then.

Hanna laughed and traced his abs with her fingers. Caleb kissed the top of her head as she did so.

"What about you? What are you gonna do later?" he asked softly.

"Go out with my friends, probably."

He sighed before replying.

"You know... I'm sorry you had to cancel your plans with your friends for this Saturday to spend the day with me..."

Hanna lifted her head and looked at him.

"Hey... Yesterday was amazing, Caleb. We didn't do anything too special, we just lived a normal day, but we did it together. And it was awesome. I'm happy I chose to be with you." she told him.

Caleb sighed again and nodded.

"I'm happy you did too, but... I'm sorry you had to choose between me and them." he murmured then.

Hanna shrugged.

"A day without my friends won't kill me, Caleb. I wanted to be with you, that's it. I chose to be with you instead of them for one day... I don't think it's that mean as a thing. It's not like I made a life choice." she replied.

Caleb smiled and nodded, then Hanna lied back down between his arms.

"But... If this thing works out, we will have to stand up and be counted at some point. Right?" she added as she made herself comfortable against his bare chest.

He stayed silent for a few seconds, but he eventually answered.

"Right. Of course."

* * *

 **A/N: I'm so sorry for the late :( These last days have been crazy, I had a lot of things to do and I didn't manage to update... But here I am right now :) Hopefully the chapter is good enough to make you guys forgive me, let me know ;) Sooo... I'm so happy you enjoyed the previous chapter. I'm not gonna lie, even though I enjoyed it, I made kind of an effort to display Caleb's feelings the best that I could, but if you guys tell me it was good, I'm very happy about that and it means that the effort was worth it :):) What about this chapter? Their first night together :) Anyway, Hanna's also starting to think what would be like stopping the sneaking thing with Caleb... What do you guys think? Laura, I agree with you, how can someone hate animals? I have two dogs and I love them like my babies :D Ella, of course I loved the 6x06 scene, even though I think they could have made it last just a little bit longer, it was like thirty seconds or so—but I can't complain anyway xD HalebForever, so sorry for the late, again :( FrenchBenzo, an AU is an alternative-universe fic, that means that it uses characters from a show but without following the plot of that show—sorry, English is not my native language, so when I have to explain things I still suck a little, I hope you understand though :D Oookay, that's all, people :) Thank you as always for reading, reviewing and for all of the support you keep showing me. I'm so glad about that, seriously, I really appreciate everything. Keep it up :) Just a few last things: 1. next chapter you'll see Hanna with her friends; 2. I updated my other fic "I won't let this plane go down" too, check it out, and check also "I have a reason" if you haven't yet, a new one shot of mine based on the Haleb scene in 6x06 :) Have a good day! Love you! xx -Atramea.**


	12. Chapter 12

"Hey, guys." Hanna greeted her friends, entering the cafeteria.

Emily, Aria and Spencer greeted her back as she sat at the table with them.

"So... How was your night with Holden?" Spencer asked, raising an eyebrow.

Hanna bit her lower lip and shrugged.

"Uhm... Actually, nothing happened. We just...slept." she mumbled.

"Cut the crap, Hanna." Spencer said.

Hanna furrowed an eyebrow at that.

"I'm serious, we didn't do anything but sleep." she added.

"Han... I saw Holden last night. With a girl. And it wasn't you." Emily said then.

Hanna remained speechless.

"Han... We can't force you to tell us anything, of course, and it's okay if you don't want to, but... We're worried for you. Are you in trouble? Why are you lying to us? We never had secrets." Aria asked her.

Hanna sighed deeply before pursing her lips.

"I'm sorry for all the lies, okay? I really am." she murmured then.

"Okay, but.. Is everything alright? If something bad happened and you need our help, you know we—" Emily started, but Hanna cut her off.

"Everything's okay, guys. I swear. I just... I can't tell you more right now. It's complicated, but I'm fine and not doing anything bad. I promise. Just trust me."

"Are you seeing a guy?" Aria asked.

Hanna nodded shyly, attempting a small smile.

"Is it the dentist?" Spencer went straight to the point.

Hanna sighed deeply, without answering.

"Hanna, he's a married man." Spencer continued.

"I know he is, okay? I know. But... There's a lot more you guys don't know about him, but I can't tell you." Hanna replied then.

"So you're really seeing him?" Aria raised her eyebrows.

Hanna sighed again. She really don't know how much longer she could do that.

"It's... _complicated_. Can we not talk about it? Just... Let's talk about something else, okay? Can we do that? I'm still the same person as always, whether I'm seeing _the dentist_ or a new guy or no one at all. I promise that I'm gonna tell you guys everything from the beginning, just not now. I can't. Please." she pleaded then, biting her lower lip and looking all of her three friends.

She didn't feel like telling them Caleb's whole story and the truth about his marriage. He was a very reserved man and he had told all of those things to her in confidence, plus she had promised him she wouldn't tell anyone. So she wasn't going to, despite Spencer, Aria and Emily being her bestfriends.

"Okay." Aria nodded, smiling.

"Yeah, that's fine." Emily added.

Spencer sighed before replying as well.

"I just hope you know what you're doing, Han."

"I do, Spence. I promise." Hanna replied finally, smiling slightly.

* * *

 ** _One month later..._**

"Oh, yeah, Caleb... Oh my God! Yeah, Caleb! Yeah!" Hanna moaned, on top of him.

"Fuck, Hanna... More, don't stop... Keep going..." he grunted.

She was riding him, hard, on his bed. The springs were squeaking so loudly that Hanna was wondering if they were gonna break the whole bed continuing that way. He was guiding her hips with his hands, digging his fingers into her asscheeks, his tongue licking his own lips and his eyes narrowed but glued to the point where they were joined as one. Their pleasure sighs and moans were filling the bedroom.

They were having sex —rough sex, _awesome_ sex—, like they had been doing for a month and something by now, keeping their relationship on, but they were still hiding themselves from the world, they were seeing each other still secretly.

And then, they violently orgasmed almost at the same time. The vein on Caleb's neck swelled up as he lifted his head from the pillow and pressed his chin against his own chest. He squeezed his eyes shut and let out a long moan as he came, squeezing Hanna's ass tightly. She threw her head back and gripped his thighs, burying her fingernails into his flesh, her moan overlied to his one as she released her orgasm as well. She felt her heart explode as she collapsed on his body, exhausted as well. She caught her breath and rolled off him, lying on the mattress next to him. Caleb took a couple of deep breaths before disposing of the condom and pulling Hanna closer to him, giving her a long deep kiss. Then, he reached out for the pack of cigarettes on his nightstand, grabbing one of them and placing it between his lips. He quickly lightened it up before placing both the pack and the lighter back on the nightstand. He circled Hanna's shoulders with an arm, pulling her to his chest as he took a drag from his cigarette. Hanna placed a small kiss on his shoulder before looking up at him.

"What time is it?" she asked softly.

Caleb let out a stream of smoke from the corner of his mouth before turning to the alarm on his nightstand.

"A quarter to eight." he replied, rubbing his thumb over Hanna's bare arm.

Hanna snorted at his answer.

"Fucking hell, I gotta go." she muttered, distangling herself from Caleb's grasp.

"Oh, c'mon... Five minutes more..." he begged, grabbing her wrist.

Hanna shook his hand off her arm and sighed as she searched for her underwear.

"You know I can't. And I'm seriously wondering when you will understand that we can't keep going this way." she mumbled.

Caleb took another drag from his cigarette and sat up in bed.

"Hanna... You know it's complicated." he replied then, as the smoke came out of his mouth.

"Yeah, right, _complicated_. C'mon, Caleb, it's been over a month by now. And... It's rather difficult for me to find everyday a different alibi to come here when not even my bestfriends know what I'm actually doing instead of being with them... It's like I have to find an excuse for my mom and then another one for my friends... It's like I have to find an excuse for the whole world to do this. Honestly, I don't know how much longer I can keep doing this, Caleb."

He looked at her and furrowed his eyebrows.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"Don't get me wrong... I want to keep seeing you, I really do want to, but maybe... Maybe I should tell at least one of my friends about us. This way it would be definitely easier for me to spend time with you. And I would feel better with myself, too."

Caleb stayed silent, so Hanna continued.

"When we hadn't even kissed yet, I tried to tell them that I liked you, and—"

"What? You did?" he cut her off.

"Yeah, but... They just told me it was wrong because you were married. And I didn't tell them the truth about your marriage, I promised you I wouldn't, so I didn't, even if I think that they figured it out that we have a thing by now. But... If I just tell them about us, explaining how things actually are between you and Melissa, maybe—"

"Hanna, don't. Please. I'm not ready yet." he cut her off again.

Hanna sighed and pulled away slightly from him.

"Ready for what, Caleb? If my one of my friends knew about this, she sure would never tell anyone. I trust all of them with my life... No one would ever know that your freaking wife cheated on you and ran away with your money and another man besides this friend of mine." she snapped.

Caleb remained speechless at that and his expression definitely changed. Hanna then realized she had probably been a little harsh and tactless.

"I'm sorry, I... I didn't mean to sound like... _that_." she murmured.

Caleb sighed and estinguished his cigarette against the bottom of the ashtray he had on the nightstand as well.

"Don't worry... You just said the truth, the way things actually are." he replied then.

Hanna understood she had hit still a nerve of his. And she understood he wasn't ready to completely cut his bond with Melissa yet.

"Okay, look... I get it, you... You need more time. A month is probably still not enough. And I'm willing to wait for you. Sorry." she said then.

Caleb looked over at her and gave her a small nod, then Hanna continued getting back dressed.

"But..." she began again.

"But?" Caleb furrowed his eyebrows.

Hanna sighed and scratched her forehead before continuing.

"But I need to know that...you're not still waiting for _her_ to come back. Because I can accept that you don't want to divorce yet, I can accept that you still feel something when it comes up her name, because it's absolutely comprehensible, but—"

He cut her off, again.

"Hanna, hey. Don't go on. I took my wedding ring off in front of you, you're the only girl I've been with after her, and I told you I'm not joking with you. God, you're not a second best. And that's the truth. Why would you think I'm still waiting for her? You know, maybe I was... But before I started seeing you outside of work. Before we started drinking wine on my couch, before the night you came here telling me you liked me and then everything else happened. You just...you just have to be a little patient with me. I need to get out of my shield first, before facing the consequences of the end of my marriage. Trust me, you're helping me doing that, but I'm not ready... _yet_. But for God's sake... It's not just sex with you. I'm not playing with you. I already told you."

Hanna sighed and roamed an hand through her hair.

"Okay. I believe you. It's just that... It's hard." she mumbled.

Caleb took a deep breath and got up from the bed, approaching her and taking her hand in his.

"I know I'm asking you for too much, and I know this is hard. You're right, it's been over a month, and I can understand that you'd need to talk at least with your friends about us, that you'd need to be with me without hiding and without thinking that I'm still married to another woman and so on. Look... I won't forbid you anything, of course. You can tell anyone about us, but... I'm just asking you not to. But I wouldn't be mad if you did. Believe me, I'd understand. And in the same way, I'd understand if you really didn't feel like keeping to do this. I'd understand even if you chose to walk away from me right now, Hanna. Even if I wouldn't be able to handle it." he murmured, looking straight into her eyes.

Hanna took a moment, but then leaned in and gave him a gentle lingering kiss on his lips.

"I'm not gonna do any of these things, Caleb. I can't ask you to divorce from your wife after this little. That's not what I want from you. I know you need more time and a lot of inner strength to do something like that, especially after you've waited all of this time before...you know. I... I'm not asking you to do something that important to you for me. I was just thinking that maybe having one, just one, of my friends knowing about the situation could help us. But if you don't want to, then... Okay." she whispered after that.

Caleb squeezed her hand.

"Why are you willing to do all of this?" he asked softly.

"Because I'm good when I'm with you. You make me happy, and alive, and a lot of other things that I don't even know how to explain. So... I don't want to give up on us. It's been a month and something, but I want to keep going for a lot of months more. Yeah, I'd like not to hide anymore, but... If there's to wait for that, then...okay, I'll wait. As long as I can do it with you." she smiled.

He smiled back and leaned in to kiss her once again.

"You make me happy too. You're amazing. Thanks for understanding." he whispered then.

* * *

Hanna came back home in time. She was a little annoyed by the whole situation by now. She just wanted to be able to be with Caleb without hiding, to sleep cuddled up to him in his same bed for the whole night, to go out with him holding his hand. But she couldn't. At least not yet.

"Hey, Han." her mom greeted her when she stepped into the house.

"Hi, mom. What's for dinner?" Hanna asked as she climbed on the couch.

"Caesar salad."

"Oh, thank God. That's one of your bests."

Ashley laughed slightly.

"You really think that?" she asked her daughter.

"Sure."

"Good, so... I can prepare it next week as well. I was thinking we could use some company."

Hanna turned to her mom.

"Which one of your friends you want to invite this time?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

She actually hated everyone of them.

"I wasn't thinking about one of my friends, actually. But maybe we could ask doctor Rivers if he and his wife want to come over for dinner next Friday." Ashley replied.

Hanna suddenly went pale.

"D-Doctor Rivers?" she repeated.

"Yeah... You know, the man you're working for." Ashley chuckled.

 _'The man I'm hooking up with, yeah, right him'_ Hanna couldn't help but think. She couldn't bear a dinner with Caleb in front of her mom. _Too_ awkward.

"Uhm... No, mom, I don't think that's a good idea. You know, doctor Rivers is always very busy, and I heard his wife is out of town at the moment, so..." she told her mom then.

"Well, he can come on his own then. Besides, asking doesn't cost anything. He's always been nice and all to you, a couple of nights he even brought you back home, you know, when we had that little problem with our car... I'd like to thank him for that. He seems a nice man. It's just a dinner, Han, don't be too dramatic." Ashley shrugged.

Hanna sighed.

"Fine, whatever." she said then.

She would just tell him to make up some excuse not to come over for that awkward dinner. Her mom would never change her mind.

"You know what? Call him now and ask him." her mom blurted out again.

"Mom, it's dinner time. We're gonna disturb." Hanna replied, raising an eyebrow.

"You just came home, which means that he just came home as well, so I don't think he's already having dinner. You said he's always busy, so if we tell him with anticipation, maybe he could keep himself free for next Friday. C'mon, call him."

Hanna stayed silent for a moment and licked her lower lip.

"I can't, my phone's out of credit." she lied then.

"Shit, Hanna, you use that freaking thing too much. Fine, then just give me his number, I'm gonna call him with mine."

Hanna sighed.

"I don't want my boss having dinner here, mom!" she whined then.

"And why is that? He's such a kind man! He's always nice to you!"

"It's my boss, so it would be awkward, okay? I don't know, it would just make me feel uncomfortable."

"Oh, shut up. We need to thank him. C'mon, now tell me what's his number." Ashley concluded, grabbing her own mobile and waiting for Hanna.

Hanna sighed. She couldn't do anything by now. Rolling her eyes, she scrolled down until Caleb's number appeared, and she read it so that her mother could dial it on her phone. She looked at her hoping Caleb wasn't going to pick up, but then, it looked like he did.

"Doctor Rivers?" Ashley began.

Hanna rubbed her forehead as she listened the rest of the conversation. _'Say no, c'mon'_ she thought.

"Hello, it's Ashley Marin, Hanna's mom... Oh no, everything's fine, I was just wondering if you were free for Friday night... Hanna and I would like to thank you for your kindness. You know, I remember those times you brought Hanna back home when we didn't have the car... It would be a pleasure. It's always just me and Hanna home, we'd be happy to have guests. It's a normal dinner, yeah... Oh, doctor, bring also your wife, of course... Uh, she's not in town? Well, that's a pity... When will she be back? I mean, if she'll be out of town just for a few days, maybe we could just reschedule the dinner so that she can come with you... Oh, okay, I understand. Well, then... Will you come, doctor? Okay, perfect. Ask Hanna for anything if there are any problems, of course. Thanks, doctor Rivers. Have a good dinner you too. Alright. Bye."

Then Ashley hung up with a little smile. _Shit_.

"So?" Hanna asked, raising an eyebrow.

"He said yes. But you were right, his wife's out of town so she won't come. Anyway, he will. He said he'll be very happy to come."

Hanna shook her head. She made a mental note to reproach him.

* * *

Later that night, when Hanna went to bed and settled herself under the sheets, she called Caleb like she did everynight before sleeping by now.

"Hey, you..." he picked up with that deep sexy voice of his.

"What the fuck were you thinking, Caleb?" she snapped immediately.

"Whoa... What's up, girl? You sound _way_ sweetier than the usual..." he chuckled.

"Why have you accepted my mom's stupid invite for dinner? Are you serious?"

"Why shouldn't I? It would have been disrespectful to reject an invite from a nice woman like your mom. Plus, haven't you thought about the fact that this way you and I are gonna spend more time together?"

"Yeah, spend time together in front of my mom? Caleb, it's gonna be the most awkward thing I've ever done in my life. That's an awful idea."

"An idea even more awful than that time we had sex in the office? Mmh, I don't think so. However, we did that too, so... I guess a simple dinner isn't going to be a big problem for us."

Hanna couldn't see him, but she knew he had that smirk of his plastered on his face. The one she hated and loved at the same time.

"I hate you." she groaned.

"Yeah, right." he laughed.

"Seriously, though. You really want to do that?"

"Why not? I really don't think your mom wants to do some research on the two of us. It's just a dinner, Hanna. It's okay. Just relax."

"Yeah, whatever. But promise me you won't do any weird comment or anything. Act normal, okay? Not even some slight sex eyes in front of my mom, got it? She _always_ gets to know _anything_ , Caleb. And she can't know about _this_. Okay?"

"Okay, okay, I promise. But... You said that, if this thing's going to work out, anyone will have to know about us in the end. I guess your mom as well..."

Hanna sighed.

"I know, okay? But you seemed clear earlier. The moment's not come yet." she added then.

Caleb paused for a second before replying.

"Right. Anyway, I'm serious... I'll be quiet. Trust me."

"I trust you. But I also know my mom. And you don't. It's like she can find out anything just with the minimal signal. Be aware of that when the three of us are gonna be awkwardly sitting at the same table."

"Fine."

"You know, I'm starting to think that actually you like the fact that this thing going on between us is a secret thing..."

Caleb laughed slightly.

"I don't and you know that. But, well, I have to say it... That's pretty hot, isn't it?" he added then.

"I hate you."

"You already said that. So, clearly, that's not what you really think."

"Oh, yeah? Then what do I really think?"

Hanna heard Caleb take a deep breath against the speaker of his phone.

"I'm not completely sure, but I know you don't hate me. That's it." he replied then.

"This way's too easy, doctor." Hanna laughed.

"Did you seriously just call me 'doctor'?"

"I'm practicing. I will have to call you that in front of my mom."

"Whatever." he chuckled.

"And be aware also of the fact that my mom's a huge redshank as well. She's gonna ask you about everything...your wife included, clearly. So make up an interesting story before Friday."

Caleb took another breath before replying.

"Okay."

"You said yes, doctor. But you're still in time to cancel."

"I'm not gonna cancel. I'll be there, Hanna."

She sighed and rolled her eyes.

"Have I already said that I hate you?" she groaned then.

"I don't think so."

Hanna sighed and turned on her side, pulling up her blankets till her chin.

"What are you doing?" she asked then.

"Just reading... With Charlie sleeping on my lap."

"How cute..." Hanna smiled.

"Ugh, whatever. What about you?"

"Lying in my bed... Wishing you were here with me..."

Caleb groaned.

"Don't say these things, Hanna. You're gonna drive me crazy this way..." he added then.

"Oh, c'mon... You sound like you haven't had sex in ages! And we both know it's not the truth."

"Well, what can I say? Even just a minute without you seems like...a lifetime."

Hanna laughed.

"See? You're _so_ cute, doctor." she added then.

"Can you please stop telling me I'm cute and calling me 'doctor'?"

"Yes, I can. But just because I'm about to pass out. See you tomorrow at work, 'kay?"

Caleb sighed.

"Okay, baby. Sweet dreams." he whispered then.

"Goodnight. Give Charlie a kiss."

"Sure thing. Night." he smiled.

"Night." Hanna repeated once again before closing the call, smiling widely.

* * *

 **A/N: I did my best to publish this chapter as soon as possible, and that's finally here, also pretty long ;) How was it? Hanna who wants to stop hiding? Caleb still unsure? Are you excited about the dinner coming up? Hope so :P I hope the guest who was curious about Ashley's envolvement likes the idea ;) and yes, I wanted to do a little time jump here as well. By the way, things will spicy up very soon... Can't wait for you to know :D As usual, thank you all so much for the support you've been showing me... I really really appreciate that and I want you to know it :) So... The guest who asked me if it's wrong to think about Ty and Ash this way... Haha, thinking about Tyshley –especially that way– could never be something wrong :P you have all of my support, lol ;) FrenchBenzo, yes, it was my intention to start "I have a reason" from the end of the love-making scene. I skipped all of the smut part, I wanted to focus on their dialogue since the show didn't show us. Yeah, of course they didn't show us smut either, but I wanted to make that one-shot something deep, you know? I really feel like Haleb is being neglected by the show and I'm not going to tell anything about Caleb not going to the prom because it really sucks and I just don't wanna tell anything about that, but ugh, I'm obviously disappointed :( Thank you also to everyone who wrote me that my fics helps them to make up to the lack of Haleb on the show... Trust me, that's very nice for me to read something like that. Anyway, I could really use your help for something guys. I need you to help me. As you know, English is not my first language. So, I'm doing a translation... There's a field hockey team who's playing a match, then one of the players do something pretty ridicolous, so the coach calls him and tells him "Have you ever thought about band?" and all the teammates start laughing and he seems really ashamed. The question is... What the coach meant by that? What's the "band" in this case? I'm really sorry for the huge off topic but I thought someone around here could help me to understand xD If someone wants to, you can write it in your review –but, hey, comment the chapter too haha– or PM me. Thank you in advance :D So... I really think that's all. As usual, your comments make my days waaaay better :) So, let me know your thoughts about the chapter ;) I hope you have an amazing day, love you all! xx -Atramea.**


	13. Chapter 13

It didn't take too much for Friday night to come.

Caleb had told Hanna not to bring her car to work, so that they could go to her place with just one car, his one, without wasting oil. Ashley knew about that and was very happy that Caleb wanted to do that. So Hanna went to the studio by bus and, around seven thirty, Caleb went to Hanna's office to say they could go. Weirdly, there still were a couple of wagers at that time, probably busy with the inventory, and Hanna felt a little uncomfortable to hop into Caleb's car under their eyes. Then she thought about the fact that their thing had to come up at some point, so she had to start getting used to those kind of looks, because she knew they were going to be like that even in the future.

"Ready to go?" he smiled, fastening his seatbelt.

Hanna rolled her eyes.

"It's going to be so awkward... And don't say I didn't warn you when it's finally gonna be over." she replied, fastening her seatbelt.

Caleb let out a little laugh and shook his head, starting the engine and exiting from the parking lot.

When they were about to pull into the driveway for Hanna's, Caleb suddenly braked and Hanna glanced at him.

"What—" she tried to ask, but Caleb's lips were already all over hers.

He slid his tongue into her mouth and she allowed him to. Then her own tongue was fighting a sweet war with his one, as his hand was now rubbing one of her knees, left exposed by her skirt. She pulled him closer to her by the tie he had put on for the dinner, while her free hand tangled in his hair. They kissed for a couple of minutes without taking a breath, then Hanna finally pulled away, gasping for air.

"Wow... What was that for?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I'm not gonna be able to touch you for the whole night... Do I really have to answer?" he grinned, finally pulling into the driveway for her place.

Hanna shook her head, smiling, as Caleb finally parked the car in front of her house. They walked to the front door and Hanna opened it with her keys.

"Mom, we're here!" she announced.

Ashley emerged from the kitchen with a bright smile on her face.

"Good evening, doctor Rivers." she said.

"Good evening, mrs Marin. Thanks for the invitation." he replied with his charming smile.

"You're welcome. Thank you for coming and for taking Hanna home." Ashley continued.

"That's a pleasure." he nodded, as Hanna shifted a little uncomfortably next to him.

Ashley smiled again at him.

"Oh... Just give me a second, I forgot something in my car." he blurted out then, walking back to the front door and exiting the house.

Ashley glanced at Hanna who replied with a shrug. It was true, she didn't know what Caleb was up to. A few seconds later, he returned with two bouquets of white roses.

"These are for you." he commented, handing one of them to Ashley and then the other one to Hanna.

Ashley accepted them with another bright smile, while Hanna just took them blushing furiously.

"Oh my God, doctor, thank you so much! You didn't have to." Ashley told him.

Hanna stayed quiet, like frozen in her spot.

"Hanna, you should thank the doctor." Ashley told her daughter, glancing at her.

Hanna pursed her lips and turned to Caleb.

"Yeah, sorry. Thank you very much, doctor. They're...wonderful." she mumbled to him.

"You're welcome." he smiled, looking from Ashley to Hanna.

"C'mon, give them to me. I'm gonna put them in a vase." Ashley continued, taking Hanna's flowers and disappearing through the hallway.

Hanna turned to Caleb and widened her eyes at him.

"What the hell? You already made things awkward and the dinner isn't even started!" she muttered.

He smirked and raised his eyebrows.

"C'mon, I needed to bring something as a thank you." he replied.

"But you could have brought the flowers only for my mom!"

"No way. First, I should have given you some flowers so long ago, plus... You would have been jealous if I had given them only to your mom, I know that." he grinned.

Hanna rolled her eyes.

"Well, you could have given me them in... _private_." she protested.

"I'm pretty sure we were too busy in _private_ to think about flowers." he grinned.

Hanna rolled her eyes again as her mom came back.

"Please, doctor, have a seat. Dinner's almost ready." Ashley said.

Caleb and Hanna followed her to the kitchen. They both took a seat as Ashley grabbed a bottle of red wine.

"Do you like wine?" she asked then.

Hanna lowered her gaze, while Caleb didn't do anything to stop the smirk raising on his face.

"I _love_ wine." he replied.

Ashley smiled and poured three glasses of wine, as Caleb thanked her. Then, she served her Caesar salad and the three could finally start eating.

"So, doctor... What about Hanna at the studio? Is she doing well?" the woman asked, smiling slightly at Caleb.

He raised his eyebrows and smiled over at Ashley.

"Absolutely. She's doing really great. Everyone of my patients is in love with her." he replied, eventually turning to Hanna.

Hanna faked a smile and blushed slightly.

"Good. You know, she cares a lot about this job." Ashley commented.

"Mom, stop." Hanna muttered.

"Trust me, that can be seen." Caleb said.

"Thanks, I guess." Hanna mumbled, looking down.

"Anyway, mrs Marin, this salad is excellent, seriously." Caleb commented then.

"I'm glad you like it. Hanna loves it too." Ashley replied.

"Yeah." Hanna sighed, faking another smile.

"You know, cooking is one of the things I've gotten better to since I divorced from my ex husband. I mean, when I was married I learned to, but since I'm a single woman it's like I've got more time for myself, and... Well, I guess you know that married life is all about sharing, right?" Ashley continued.

Caleb nodded.

"Sure." he commented simply.

Hanna was starting to feel a little tense.

"Is your wife a good cook as well?" Ashley asked Caleb, smiling.

Hanna kept her gaze low. She didn't like the idea of listening to him talk about her...at all. She knew it was coming, but she still didn't like it.

"She is. But, to be honest, I'm a better cook than her." Caleb replied.

Hanna then, felt Caleb's hand resting on top of her leg, under the table. She almost jumped off her seat, then glanced up at him slightly. He looked at her briefly before squeezing her thigh lightly, then looked back at Ashley with his charming smile.

"How long have the two of you been together before getting married?" the woman asked again, curiously.

Hanna sighed slightly, and Caleb, once again, squeezed her leg lightly.

"Four years." he replied.

Ashley nodded, smiling. Caleb's hand was still on Hanna's leg, softly stroking her skin to keep her calm. He knew she wouldn't appreciate to hear him talk about Melissa. When Ashley went to the kitchen to take another bottle of wine, Hanna turned to Caleb.

"What are you doing?" she whispered.

"I'm trying to make you relax." he replied innocently.

Hanna sighed and grabbed his hand to pull it away from her body, but he just held it in his and took them back on top of her leg.

"Hanna... It's okay. I'm no longer with Melissa and the dinner is going great. Your mom hasn't another pair of eyes under the table, so I can keep... _relaxing_ you. Only if it doesn't bother you, of course." he eventually smiled.

Hanna bit her lower lip and gave in, running her thumb over the back of his hand. She glanced back to the kitchen to make sure her mom was still busy, then she returned to look at their joined hands, furrowing her eyebrows when she noticed something.

"You forgot to put your wedding ring back on!" she whispered.

Caleb motioned a smile.

"I didn't forget it." he whispered back.

"Well, I don't see it."

"Again, I didn't forget it."

"What do you mean?"

Caleb just smiled at her, then Hanna quickly hid their joined hands under the table as her mom came back.

"Some other wine, doctor?" Ashley asked kindly.

"Sure, thanks." Caleb smiled.

"So... I'm really sorry your wife couldn't make it for tonight. From what I could understand, you and her have been together for quite a long time by now..." the woman started again, as Caleb took a sip of his wine.

"Mom, I think you're being a litte too nosey." Hanna couldn't help but say at that moment.

Caleb had to hold back a chuckle as he gave a squeeze at her hand.

"I just wanted to know if the doctor and his wife are planning on having a baby in the near future. That'd be wonderful." Ashley blurted out innocently, smiling toward Caleb.

Hanna held her breath at that. She didn't want to know what kind of story Caleb had made up about Melissa's absence. And of course the thought of him speaking about some family project with her made her want to hurl. Caleb let go of Hanna's hand to wipe his lips with his napkin, then cleared his throat before saying something that Hanna wasn't absolutely expecting.

"Well, mrs Marin, actually... My wife and I are no longer together."

Hanna couldn't help but glance at him with wide eyes. _Nobody_ knew about that. Nobody besides _her_. Caleb didn't want anybody to know. He had never wanted to. Then why the hell was he telling that at her mom when Hanna had also told him that she was a big redshank?

"Oh... I'm sorry, doctor Rivers. I... I _really_ didn't know that. I wouldn't have asked you all of those questions if I had known about that, I'm... I'm mortified." Ashley replied, visibly embarassed.

"Don't worry, mrs Marin, it's fine. Even marriages fail, unfortunately. People have to get over that at some point, though. Life goes on. It's not so dramatic as the time goes, after all." he commented before taking another sip of wine.

Hanna pursed her lips, looking at Caleb. He wasn't wearing his wedding ring, he hadn't put it back on for the dinner, yeah, but just because he had already in mind to tell her mom the truth that night. But _why_?

"Well, what really matters is that you're feeling okay now, doctor. You know, my marriage failed as well, but I got over that too, even if I currently don't have a man by my side. However, I'm fine now. Hanna's with me, that's all that matters." Ashley replied, avoiding to ask other details about the end of his marriage, probably because she knew how hard it was to experience something like that.

"Yeah, I can understand." Caleb smiled, taking another sip of wine.

"But... Is there someone who makes you happy at the moment, maybe?" the woman couldn't help but ask, though, mirroring his smile.

"Mom!" Hanna mouthed toward Ashley, widening her eyes at her.

Caleb laughed slightly, putting his hand back on Hanna's leg, this time running it up and down her thigh.

"Oh, doctor, it's fine if you don't want to reply. My daughter's right, maybe I'm actually a little bit nosey." Ashley said then.

Hanna didn't know how to keep her expression neutral while feeling Caleb's hand clearly teasing her and hearing her mom asking him all of those awkward questions. She just wanted to disappear.

"Mrs Marin, that's fine. Don't worry. Yes, actually I do have someone by my side who makes me happy. Talking about her could never bother me, it's okay." he smiled.

His hand had now gone underneath the hem of Hanna's dress. She tried to hide her blush behind her glass of wine.

"That's good. I'm happy for you, doctor. A person like you totally deserves to be happy." Ashley smiled.

"Thank you so much." Caleb smiled back.

Hanna shot him a glance when she felt his hand going a little too far, so he just pulled it back, smiling innocently at her.

* * *

At the end of the dinner, Caleb thanked Ashley and said it was time for him to go. The woman thanked him as well for the flowers and the company, and started loading the dishwasher, asking Hanna to walk Caleb to the front door. She did so, and when they were there she finally could ask him all of her questions.

"I should kill you, you know that? I told you, you didn't have to do anything, you said you wouldn't, and your freaking hand happily walked up and down my leg for the whole dinner? As if it wasn't embarassing enough!" she asked him, whispering to make sure her mom wouldn't hear.

He laughed slightly, biting his lower lip as he did so.

"Yeah, I know. I'm sorry about that, but... I just couldn't help myself." he whispered, shrugging.

"No, it's not funny, Caleb. What if my mom noticed something?"

"It wouldn't matter." he replied simply.

Hanna narrowed her eyes.

"What do you mean 'it wouldn't matter'? Plus why the hell did you tell her the truth about Melissa? You lost your freaking mind? The whole town will know in less than a couple of days now." she whispered, widening her eyes.

Caleb smiled slightly and shrugged.

"Probably, but... Well... I think it's time to turn the page." he simply replied.

Hanna furrowed her eyebrows.

"What do you mean?" she asked quizzically.

He sighed before replying.

"I'm tired of living in this huge lie. I'm tired of pretending. So...I finally made up my mind. Tomorrow I'm just gonna call my lawyer. I want to divorce from Melissa."

Hanna blinked a couple of times.

"Caleb... Are you sure?" she asked, surprised.

"Very. And... Whenever you feel ready too, I think that you and I can also stop hiding. I want to be with you and I don't have to be ashamed of anything. I don't care about what people will think... I want to take you by the hand in the middle of the street, I want to kiss you when you arrive to work without having to close the door first, I want you to sleep over for the night and I want to wake up by your side the morning after, and... I'm ready to face whatever consequence, Hanna. It's time. It's what I want. We could tell people, that's why I said it wouldn't matter if your mom understood something. We're gonna tell her, of course. We're gonna tell her that it's _you_ the girl who makes me happy. We're just gonna stand up and be counted. I'm not scared, I don't have any reason to. I want this, I... I want _us_. For real."

Hanna parted her lips slightly and stared up at him, still and silent. Caleb gave her a small smile.

"But, hey, it's okay too if you want to wait a little bit more." he added.

She shook her head quickly.

"No, it's just that... I just... I... I wasn't expecting this..." she stammered.

Caleb laughed slightly.

"I thought about all the things you told me, and...I realized you're absolutely right. Between us there's nothing complicated. It's complicated only if we want to see it like that, but the truth is that..." he said then, but he suddenly stopped.

Hanna looked up at him and waited for him to finish. Caleb licked his lower lip and looked up at the ceiling, nervously tapping his foot on the floor. Hanna instinctively reached out and took his hand in hers.

"What?" she whispered.

He closed his eyes and let out a deep breath.

"God, I had forgotten how it feels like." he mumbled.

Hanna quirked her eyebrows.

"How it feels like what?" she asked.

"How it feels when you're about to say 'I love you' for the first time to the girl you're in love with." he finally muttered, opening his eyes and meeting her gaze.

Hanna froze. Her lips parted slightly and her eyes widened slightly. But she couldn't form any word. She just couldn't.

"I love you, Hanna." he whispered.

And when she heard it, she totally forgot how to speak and how to move. She wanted to do something, to say something, but she just couldn't.

"I know that we've been seeing each other for not a long time, but... It's like life wanted to give me a second chance to be happy, and... I know what I feel. I know it. You literally stole my heart, Han. You mean a lot to me. I don't mean to scare you, but... I needed to tell you." he added, shrugging.

Hanna, once again, didn't do or say absolutely anything. Caleb squeezed her hand one last time and smiled at her, before opening the front door.

"Thank you again for the dinner, it was great. Goodnight." he concluded, and then he closed the door behind his back.

 _Awesome_.

He had told her he loved her and she hadn't said or done absolutely anything. And then he was gone.

That had been the weirdest dinner she had ever had in her whole life.

Hanna took a moment to process everything, then she just walked back to the kitchen where her mom was.

"Is he gone?" Ashley asked.

Hanna just nodded, with her gaze lost.

"Honey, is everything okay?" Ashley asked again, noticing her a little fuzzy.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Hanna replied, quickly nodding.

"Okay. Well... Do you think he appreciated everything?"

"Sure."

Ashley nodded and smiled at her daughter.

"Oh, mom... You know what? I... I just remembered that Spencer needs some notes of today's class, so... I'm just going to bring them to her, okay? She really needs them." Hanna stammered then.

"Hanna... It's kind of late now. Can you just do it tomorrow?"

"I can't. She has an exam tomorrow."

"Tomorrow? On Saturday?"

"Yeah, mom. On Saturday. I'll be right back, don't worry."

And then Hanna had already started walking to the front door, grabbing her coat while opening it, without worrying about what her mom could think about her at the moment, if she had understood something, if she hadn't... Hanna didn't care. She just hopped in her car and speeded up to Caleb's place.

* * *

 **A/N: Guys, I love you. Your reviews seriously make my days :) I can't express how much grateful I am for all of the support, so I thought that updating was the best way to thank you all for your kindness. I swear, I made it as soon as possible, I wanted to update sooner but it was literally impossible to me. I hope I didn't make you wait too long, though :) And I also hope that this dinner chapter was enough good and that didn't disappoint your expectations ;) I tried to make it funny, awkward but also a little bit serious at the same time :) But I bet you weren't expecting Caleb's confession at the end :D Thoughts about it? Thoughts about the dinner? Thoughts about Ashley? Yeah, well, tell me whatever you want as usual ;) A special thank you to the guest who gave me all of those suggestion for this chapter – I tried to incorporate some of them to my initial version of the chapter, hope you liked it :) Another special thanks to HalebForever for the perfect explanation about my translation doubt – that was a marching band, by the way – but also because your reviews are seriously the best hahaha ;) FrenchBenzo, I really don't know about how many chapter this will last, actually I never knew when I start a fic, I just start it and then see where it goes :) But, seriously, thanks to each one of you because the number of reviews for this story is impressive and I never expected so much love when I started the fic, absolutely. It was more like an experiment :) So, again, thank you with all my heart :D Spoilers for the next chapter: of course some due Haleb cuteness since Hanna's going to talk to him, but there's a BIG surprise at the end :O For who's interested, I also updated "I Won't Let This Plane Go Down", that's a pretty intense chapter too, check it out ;) So, that's all :) One last thank you to you guys for reading and reviewing – in advance ;) I'll do my best not to make you wait too long again :) I love you all! xx -Atramea.**


	14. Chapter 14

Hanna couldn't let that be the way she reacted to his 'I love you'. She couldn't. She had looked like a total idiot, probably. She couldn't let him think that she was an idiot, right? And maybe... Maybe she needed to tell him _something_ as well, right? Actually, she didn't know if she loved him, or at least she had never asked herself if she did. But right now, she only knew she had to go to him.

She parked her car behind his one and waited a minute before finally walking to the front door. Charlie wasn't outside, he was probably inside with Caleb, who was probably reading, as he did everynight before going to bed. She knew his habits by now. She rang the doorbell and took a deep breath, realizing she absolutely didn't know what to say or anything when he would open that damn door. But as soon as he did and she saw that freaking smile of his, she immediately relaxed.

"Hey... Long time no see." he joked, crossing his arms over his chest and leaning by the doorframe.

"Yeah, well... May I come in?" she replied awkwardly.

He raised her eyebrows and made her some room to enter, smiling. She did so, then Charlie ran to her. She greeted the dog and then sat on the couch, while Caleb made Charlie go outside and then closed the door before joining her.

"You... You really think that?" she asked nervously.

"Think what?" Caleb asked back, even though he had perfectly understood.

Hanna sighed before continuing.

"That you... Yeah, that you love me."

Caleb smiled and gently took a strand of her hair off her face.

"I would never lie to you." he whispered.

Hanna didn't reply, so he just came closer to her and cupped her face before kissing her, slowly and gently. She kissed back, thinking it was the best answer for the moment. Then they pulled away and he smiled at her once again.

"I want to start over with you. I want you by my side, and I'm not going to care a shit about what anyone thinks. I'm going to divorce so I'll be completely yours, and so you won't have to worry anymore about the fact that I'm _technically_ married to another woman. I fell for you, Hanna. I'm in love with you. That's why I want to do all of this. And I'm completely sure about that." he whispered, rubbing his thumb over her chin.

She didn't reply, so he furrowed an eyebrow.

"Am I scaring you? You're not ready for...all of that?" he asked then, concerned.

She shook her head quickly, smiling slightly.

"No, not at all, I just... I've waited for so long to hear that and now... I still can't realize."

He smiled back and took her hand in his, interlacing their fingers. They stayed in silence for a while. Caleb was staring at Hanna as she blushed under his eyes, feeling embarassed by the whole situation.

"Thank you." she whispered then, biting her lower lip.

He chuckled at that.

" _Thank you_?" he repeated, furrowing his eyebrows but still smiling.

"Yeah, I mean... I know how much it means for you...the divorce. It's a big step for you."

"It's definitely worth it." he replied.

They locked eyes for a long moment before Hanna threw herself into Caleb's arms again, kissing him. Then, he hugged her tightly and pulled her onto his lap, so that she was straddling him. He buried his face into the crook of her neck, inhaling deeply that sweet smell of hers and occasionally leaving kisses or gently nibbling at her skin, as she closed her eyes and got relaxed under his cuddles. Then, he pulled away and started playing with a loose strand of her hair as she just looked down at him, everything in a comfortable silence.

"I'm sorry if I had that weird reaction when you told me earlier at my house..." she whispered out of the blue.

Of course Caleb immediately understood what she was talking about and smiled.

"You mean... _non-reaction_." he added.

"Whatever. I'm sorry, I was an idiot."

Caleb chuckled and leaned in to kiss her quickly.

"It's okay, baby. You're not an idiot. It's understandable, I kinda caught you off guard, didn't I?" he asked.

"You sure did. But... I really appreciated that."

He smiled widely at her.

"Stay here tonight." he whispered then, placing his hands on each of her thighs, left exposed by her short dress.

Hanna groaned.

"You know I can't... _yet_." she added then.

He sighed, rubbing patterns on her skin.

"Yeah, yeah, sorry. I always hope there's a chance you can. Hopefully things will change soon, though..." he said then.

"They will, Caleb. I agree with you, I'm more than ready to get out of this bubble. I just hope people won't ruin anything once they know..."

"They won't. We won't let them do that. I promise. This thing is just ours, Hanna. Mine and yours. And people knowing about that won't mean that it's gonna be theirs too, got it?"

Hanna nodded and Caleb's lips immediately turned into a smile. He took a strand of her hair off her face before kissing her again, passionately. When they pulled away, Hanna smiled down at him.

"I love you too." she whispered.

Caleb smiled back. He thought it sounded really nice coming out from her mouth.

"Hanna... You don't have to say it just because I did." he said then, though.

"It's not because of that, believe me. I do love you, even since before realizing it, probably... But, hey, overlooking that, it was nice you said it first."

"Oh, yeah?" he chuckled.

"Yeah." she smirked.

They restarted kissing, this time pretty eagerly. Hanna's hands hastily unbuttoned Caleb's shirt, the one he had still on from the dinner, while his hands traveled under her dress, reaching the material of her thong. Once his shirt was completely unbuttoned, her fingernails walked down his chest, leaving an heavy mark, then her hands stopped above his abs, which twitched under her touch. He broke the kiss to focus his mouth on her neck, reaching her pulsepoint and starting to suck, as his index finger was right at her entrance. But then, just when things were starting to get pretty heated, they were interrupted by Hanna's phone ringing. She pulled away from him growling and reached out for the coffee table where her mobile was placed and grabbed it.

"Yeah, mom, it's okay, I'm on my way." she picked up immediately.

Caleb grinned at that.

"Yes, bye." she continued, and then hung up.

She placed her mobile back on the coffee table and turned back to him, sighing.

"You know, I... I'm scared about what her reaction will be, but... I seriously can't wait for her to know so I won't have to find excuses anymore." she muttered.

Caleb motioned a smile, pulling his hands out of her dress to place them on her thighs.

"We'll tell her together, if you want." he said softly then.

"That'd be great. She likes you, and I really hope she'll still like you when she finds out that you've been hooking up with her daughter for over a month." she chuckled.

"Well, if she won't... We'll run away together somewhere far from everything and everyone. I also have a boat, you know." he shrugged, still smiling.

"I hope we won't have to come to that point."

"Yeah, well, so do I. But I do have a boat, so, you know... We have a way out, just in case." he smirked.

Hanna laughed slightly while getting up.

"Any visible marks?" she asked.

Caleb looked at her, gently moving her hair to the side, before shaking his head.

"Everything looks fine." he murmured, caressing her face before retiring his hand from her.

"Okay." she smiled.

"You've been the one rough this time." he grinned then, pointing to his unbuttoned shirt.

The sign of Hanna's fingernails on his chest was rather obvious. She just smirked at him before walking to the door as he followed her. When they got there, Hanna kissed him, staying close to him even when they pulled away. He looped his arms around her waist and smiled down at her.

"Everything's gonna change tomorrow with my call to the lawyer. We're ready to face the world. And...it's gonna be fine, you heard me?" he whispered gently, placing his forehead against hers.

She nodded and returned the smile.

"I love you." she whispered back then.

Caleb's smile visibly grew. He clearly had to get used at that.

"I love you too." he added before kissing her once again.

"I'll see you soon. Goodnight." she whispered then, opening the door.

Caleb nodded and watched her leave, not before bending down to say goodbye to Charlie. Then, when the car was gone, Caleb called his dog and made him come inside with him to use some company. He climbed on the couch and restarted reading his book, trying to forget the boner he had between his legs. Charlie just lied down on the carpet of the living room, near to him.

* * *

Hanna came back home and walked inside. Ashley was standing there, in the living room, smiling slightly. Hanna smiled back, even though she wasn't sure about the meaning of that smile.

"Hi, mom. Sorry, it's just that...Spencer had a lot to tell me." she greeted her.

"Sweetheart, you can stop lying by now."

Her mom's reply made Hanna freeze in her spot. Her blood ran cold and her heart skipped a beat.

"W-What do you mean, mom?" she asked stuttering, wondering if there was some sign on her neck which Caleb hadn't noticed.

"Now I get why you didn't want doctor Rivers to come over for dinner tonight."

Hanna remained silent. It was the only thing she could do.

"Why didn't you just tell me sooner?" Ashley asked, raising her eyebrows.

Hanna sighed.

"Are you mad at me?" she murmured then.

"Look, I've been overprotective with you lately, I realized it. You're twenty-three, you're a woman by now. I can't be mad at you just for the fact you didn't tell me you're seeing someone. You're not obliged to tell me these things. I mean, if you want, it's okay, but if you don't, it's okay too. I get that. However... Now I know, so..." Ashley shrugged.

"He's nice. He really is, mom."

"Well... That's a reason more to make me meet him."

That confused Hanna. She furrowed an eyebrow at her mom, so Ashley continued.

"Yeah, you know... Maybe next Friday instead of your boss we can make your guy come over for dinner. So, these boring dinners with your mom and some older people won't stop you from have a night with your boyfriend. And so... You won't have to run to him as soon as our guest gets out of the house."

 _Thank God she didn't understand a freaking thing._

"Uhm... Yeah, sure. Yeah, you're right. You'll meet him soon, mom. Actually, he... He has a couple of things to figure out at the moment, but then... Then I promise you'll meet him." Hanna replied, nodding.

And she wanted to. She wanted her mom to meet Caleb as the guy she was seeing and not as her boss. Caleb would make that damn call to his lawyer the following day, then they could talk to her, together as he had suggested.

"Fine. Now go to bed, c'mon." Ashley chuckled.

Hanna smiled and then walked to the stairs, but Ashley stopped her before she could reach her bedroom.

"Oh, Han... Did you know about doctor Rivers' wife? That totally surprised me."

Hanna shook her head, shrugging slightly.

"I didn't." she lied.

 _Hopefully that would be her last lie._

* * *

Caleb was still reading his book, smiling.

He was happy. His life finally seemed to go back to some stability after almost a year of total mess. He had married the wrong woman, but he felt like he wasn't stumbling upon another mistake with Hanna, at all. She could always make him smile, make his days a lot better and everything. She had been able to make him restart believing in love when he thought he was never going to believe in it again.

Suddenly, it started raining furiously, with thunders and everything. Caleb just thought Hanna had been lucky to leave a little before that, she had been just in time. But then, after a little while, he heard the doorbell ring and smiled. Hanna was used to forget something, it happened very often. He placed the book back on the table and got up, walking to the door while Charlie kept sleeping on the carpet.

And then he opened it... And his jaw almost fell to the ground.

Standing in front of him, there was the last person he thought he would see.

"Hi." she murmured.

She was soaking wet, from head to toe. She was shaking. She had her eyes red and puffy, like she had cried. Her gaze was clearly ashamed, and she couldn't sustain his one for so long, so she soon lowered her eyes. Her right hand was firmy pressed on her belly, while in her left one was missing her gold wedding ring.

It was Melissa.

* * *

 **A/N: So, she's back, as a lot of you were expecting u.u A little plot twist was needed here :P But guys, seriously, I'm in love with you all! 19 reviews to the last chapter, I'm speechless. The things you tell me are too kind, I just can't :') We also got over 200 reviews :):) By the way, Laura, your wording wasn't jumbled at all, you understood everything ;) So... I know this chapter was a little shorter than usual, but I had to leave you with a little cliffhanger, sorry guys :P You'll see more of Melissa in the next chapter of course :) – even though I don't know if that's a good thing for you haha :D Anyway, I hope you'll keep up your amazing support and let me know what you think about the chapter and Melissa's return ;) Side note: I'm so excited for the PLL finale tomorrow :D And Haleb last week was too cute, my heart literally exploded because of the feels! Caleb is just the perfect guy, I can't deal with his sweetness :):) Once again, thank you to each one of you guys for being here :) also thanks for reading! Waiting for your reviews ;) And I also updated my other story, if you want to check that out as well ;) Love you all! xx -Atramea.**


	15. Chapter 15

"Thanks." Melissa said as Caleb brought her a cup of hot tea.

Then, he awkwardly sat on the couch next to her, without even being able to look at her. He had given her a blanket to get warm, since she was soaking wet from the pouring rain, but they basically hadn't exchanged a single world. He had just made her come in, he had made Charlie go downstairs to the garage since he knew the dog would probably bother Melissa, then he had given her the blankets and now the cup of tea. But not a word, except for her couple of thanks.

Caleb kept looking down at his own feet as she drank her tea. And when she was done, she placed the empty cup on the coffee table and finally searched for his eyes.

"I'm sorry, Caleb." she murmured.

Caleb just bit his lip, still looking away. Everything seemed so unreal, starting from the fact that she was sitting next to him after almost a year without seeing her...because she had ran away with his money and another man after just a couple of months of marriage.

"Why are you here?" he asked then, finally crossing her gaze.

Melissa sighed as she tightened the blanket around her body.

"Wren took all the money for himself and left me. He tricked me." she replied.

"Like _you_ tricked _me_." Caleb commented, almost sarcastically.

"I'm sorry, believe me. I'm really sorry. You didn't deserve it. I feel like shit for what I did to you."

"So... What do you want now? Just... Restarting to live here with me as my wife like nothing ever happened? Who knows, maybe it's just another perv plan of yours and that idiot's to steal me some other money..." he snapped, shaking his head in disbelief.

"Caleb, I—" she began again, but he abruptly cut her off.

"No, now you shut up and listen to me. You completely _destroyed_ me. You left me after only two months of marriage, you left this house, the future I had planned for the two of us, the future I thought we were planning together... You did so much more than cheating on me... You _betrayed_ me. In every sense. You didn't care about anything, just yourself and that asshole, who even left you now. I... I loved you, Melissa. I really did. You were my whole family, my whole life. And then you left me. I don't know if and where I went wrong, but the point is that... You can't just come here after a year and tell me that you're sorry, you get it? I don't care about the money you stole me. That's the very last of my problems. You hurt me because you betrayed me, not because of that stupid fucking money. I loved you and I trusted you, and you just left me alone like an idiot, because...I thought you loved me too. But I was clearly wrong. So... I don't care why you're here. You just have to go...now. The only thing I can do for you is give you an umbrella. Nothing else."

Melissa stayed silent for a few seconds before speaking again.

"Caleb, I'm... I'm so ashamed for what I did, that's why I would have never come back here if I didn't really need you. But... This is not about me..."

Caleb sighed and roamed an hand through his hair.

"Oh, no? Then who's this about?" he asked.

Melissa's eyes became filled with tears as she took a deep breath.

"I'm pregnant." she confessed in a whisper.

Caleb's mouth fell open an he stared at her with wide eyes. She sniffed and continued.

"It's Wren's, of course. I told him, and he seemed happy about it. But then he ran away with the money and left me a note where he just apologized because he couldn't be a father to this baby. I'm twenty weeks far along, and I don't have an house, a job, a single dollar, someone... I have nothing. If I were alone, I wouldn't have dared ask for your help after what I did to you, believe me, Caleb, but... I'm going to have a baby, and I can't do this alone. You are everything that remains to me. I have no right to ask you this, but... I know you have a big heart, so... I just hope you can understand."

Caleb lowered his gaze on her belly and could now notice her little bump. He then closed his eyes and breathed in deeply, scratching his forehead while breathing out.

"I came here hitchhiking from Brasil. All the way through. It took weeks for me to get here, but... You... You're the only one who can save me... _us_." she added softly, pressing her own hand against her belly.

"So, what do you want from me now? You want me to father the baby of the two people who ruined my life?" Caleb asked, shaking his head.

Melissa sighed and wiped her tears away.

"This baby doesn't have any fault in all of this mess, Caleb." she murmured.

He rubbed his eyes and sighed again as Melissa continued.

"Think about it just for one second. This could be our chance to start over. We could tell people I haven't been around because of my pregnancy... _our_ pregnancy. We could tell them we just wanted a little privacy. People don't have to know the truth. This baby would be yours, mine and yours. And then we could also try to put the pieces of our marriage back together for this child. We could save our marriage with this baby, Caleb. Maybe we still have a chance together. I understood that I made a huge mistake leaving you, the biggest of my whole life, and I don't expect everything right away from you, but... Maybe we could learn to be together again. I know there's no better person than you to be a dad to my baby. And I know you would raise him or her like they're your own child. Forgive me, Caleb, and then... Let's just give another try. For _our_ family."

Caleb shook his head quickly.

"There's no 'our family', Melissa. How do you expect me to say yes to something like this? That's totally insane!" he snapped, spreading his arms in disbelief.

"Caleb, please, just think about it..."

"It's way too late."

"No, it's not."

"Yes, it is! I moved on, I'm with someone!" Caleb yelled then.

Melissa, at that, stayed quiet.

"Then... Why you never applied for the divorce?" she asked softly only after a few seconds.

Caleb pursed his lips.

"I wasn't ready, but... I'm going to call the lawyer tomorrow." he replied then.

"Tomorrow? Seriously, Caleb?" she raised an eyebrow.

"Look, I don't need you to believe me. This is not going anywhere. Listen... I can give you some money for you and the baby, you can even spend the night in the guestroom, but that's it. Tomorrow you're leaving, I'm really calling the lawyer and then you and I are done for good. I'm sorry, Melissa, but you're the one who screwed up the family _we could have been_. Not me."

Caleb was heading to the stairs but Melissa reached out and grabbed his wrist as a thunder echoed outside.

"Caleb, I know you still feel something for me." she said firmly, slowly leaving her grasp.

"Melissa, stop."

"Look..." she mumbled then, pulling something out of the pocket of her jeans.

It was a ring, a gold ring, _that_ ring...her wedding ring.

"I never sold it. I never felt like doing it. I wanted to keep something that reminded me of you. I've always kept it with me, _always_ , even if I wasn't wearing it. And I saw yours on the disk of the coffee table too. You probably took it off, but you didn't get rid of it. If we both didn't have the guts of getting rid of it, it most likely means that... That there's still something between us, Caleb. Maybe it will take some time, but I know we can rebuild our marriage. Are you really sure that the girl you're seeing is more important than me, this baby and the life we could have together starting from today?" she continued.

"I love her." he answered firmly.

Melissa nodded and pursed her lips.

"Is it that blonde girl who left your house half an hour ago?" she asked then.

Caleb furrowed an eyebrow.

"How long have you been out here?" he asked.

"Long enough to see her pulling out of your driveway." she shrugged.

Caleb just sighed at that.

"Who is she? Does she work for you?" Melissa asked again.

"She's my secretary." he answered.

"How old is she?"

"You don't have the right to ask about her, you know that, right?"

"She's way younger than you. It was just a moment, but I saw her outside, Caleb. She's young, very young. She's probably still in college, am I right?"

"She's twenty-three and she's graduating next year... So what?" he replied.

"God, Caleb, she's just a kid... I am _your wife_."

"You don't know anything about her. And you stopped being my wife so long ago. Your choice." he grunted then.

"Okay, look... You can't screw everything up just because of a stupid crush on a young girl. Caleb... You, this baby and I could be a family. That's the life a man like you is supposed to live. With a wife of his age and his first kid after one year of wedding, with a respectable work and everything. If you call the lawyer tomorrow and you choose her, you know what people would think of you? They'd think that the respectable doctor Rivers has been sleeping with his young secretary for months, and that's why he divorced from his wife. People wouldn't respect you anymore. Your reputation would go away in just a few hours. You'd lose all of your dignity. And then, maybe, that girl will also break up with you. She probably just thinks that sleeping with her boss is something awesome and exciting, and maybe she likes your beautiful car, your huge house, your pool, but... That's it. She'll get tired of you soon. She's too young, she's not the woman you need by your side."

"Shut up, you don't know her! And stop talking about 'family'! You have no right to come to my house after all this time and say all of these bullshit, did you hear me?"

Melissa sighed and then reached out for Caleb's hand. And he didn't know why, but he didn't shake it off. She gently guided it to her belly, where she placed it, and then pressed her own hand on top of his.

"You can choose me and this baby. Your wife, a family, a stable future, the life you're meant to live... Or you can choose her. A bet without guarantees, a college girl, a life which is not heading anywhere, while your wife would be in the middle of a street with nothing to feed her innocent baby... What does a man like you deserve, Caleb? What should a man like you choose? Which decision would make your parents proud of you? Sleep and think about it. Night's gonna help you to clear your mind. I'm sure that tomorrow you'll know if you have to call your lawyer or not." she whispered.

He didn't move of an inch as she came closer to him and kissed his cheek. It had been so long since the last time she had kissed him. A shiver ran through his spine as she pulled away and her lips were just a few inches away from his ones.

"Goodnight." she whispered again before pulling away for good and heading to the guestroom.

* * *

Hanna was now settled down in her bed, warm under the blankets. She was thinking about the crazy day she had had, but with a bright smile on her face. It had been so nice to hear Caleb's first 'I love you'. Even though he had acted a little mischievous during the awkward dinner they had had with her mom, of course she had forgiven him after hearing what he had to tell her. His 'I love you' and the promise he was going to call his lawyer to get the divorce right the next day had definitely made Hanna forget about any of that.

She sighed happily and reached out for her mobile, placed on the nightstand. She dialed Caleb's number and put the phone between her ear and the pillow, waiting for him to pick up.

"Hello?"

"Hey..." she whispered, as her smile grew at the sound of his voice.

"Hey... Did you get home?"

"Yeah. I'm in bed right now."

"Good."

There were a few seconds of silence before Hanna spoke again.

"Hey, you know, when I got back home, my mom started saying things like 'You can stop hiding now' and stuff, and I thought she had understood everything, but... Yeah, well, she understood that I'm dating someone but she didn't put all the pieces together... She doesn't think it's you."

"Yeah, well... Good."

Hanna heard him a little distant. He never sounded like that on the phone.

"Caleb, is everything okay?" she asked.

He sighed deeply.

"Yeah, yeah... I'm fine. Sorry, it's just that... I don't know, I'm probably just tired." he said then.

"Are you sure?"

"I'm sure."

"Did you change your mind about calling the lawyer?" she asked then, suddenly worried.

"No, no, I didn't. I meant every word I told you, Hanna. I promise."

"Then what is it? Did I do something wrong, maybe? You sound... _weird_."

"You... You didn't do anything wrong, baby. And I had no changes of mind. Don't worry, okay? I'll just talk to you tomorrow, alright?"

Hanna bit her lower lip.

"Okay." she murmured through the speaker then.

"Okay. Love you."

"Love you too. Night."

"Night."

And then he hung up. Hanna didn't expect a phone call like that after the beautiful things he had told her that day. He was always sweet and everything when they talked by phone before going to sleep, but not that night. She really couldn't figure out what was wrong. About an hour earlier, they were cuddling on his couch and everything was wonderful. Then what happened? He had never acted like that with her before.

She just sighed and closed her eyes, hoping it wasn't so much of a big deal.

* * *

 **A/N: There you go! Melissa is back and pregnant! A few of you guessed it ;) What do you think about it? How was Caleb's reaction? Let me know :) I hope everyone of you could read the last chapter because just after I published it, the site hasn't worked for a few hours :( So make sure you didn't miss it xD I also hope you appreciate the Haleb phone call at the end, even though Caleb was still a little...shocked :P Now... What do you think Caleb's gonna do? Will Melissa's return affect his actions or not? I already have the next chapter half-written, so I already know, but you don't :P Anyway, you can try to guess ;) As always, a huge thanks to you all for reading, reviewing, following and everything :) It's always nice to see how the stats of this story get higher and higher, that always puts a huge smile on my face and it's all because of you :D Anyway, I seriously can't wait to read your comments about Melissa, because I know they won't be nice hahaha xD So, let me know :) Also, "I won't let this plane go down" will be updated ASAP ;) Love you guys, until next time! xx -Atramea.**


	16. Chapter 16

Caleb sighed and rubbed his eyes.

Last night had been sleepless. He was now sitting at the table, cupping a glass of orange juice into his hands. The thought of Melissa sleeping the next door had kept him awake for the whole night. However, not being able to sleep, he had had a lot of time to think, and he felt like he had finally made up his mind about the whole Melissa thing.

"Good morning." her voice announced herself as she came down the stairs.

Caleb lifted his gaze and studied her. She was fully dressed and looked definitely better than last night. She had probably gotten some rest, unlike him.

"Morning." he replied.

She was about to say something when he got up from the chair and handed her a piece of paper he had on table.

"I paid a hotel room for you. For a month. It's just a few miles out of town, you can stay there. A cab will come pick you up in about an hour to take you there." he told her.

She stared at him.

"A hotel? Out of town? For a month?" she murmured.

"It's all I can do, I'm sorry. You should start looking for a job, so you will be able to do everything on your own after that. However, don't worry, I'm gonna have to give you some money after the divorce, so..." he shrugged, still handing her the piece of paper.

Melissa then took it, sighing.

"So you made up your mind... You seriously want to divorce." she commented.

Caleb nodded shortly.

During his sleepless night, he had only thought about Hanna. She had given him like a boost when he was totally listless...because of Melissa. She had hurt him, in a way in which he didn't even know it could be possible. Who could tell him that she wasn't going to do it again? She was a rotten person. It was true that her baby didn't have any fault, but Caleb couldn't just give up on Hanna to father them. It would have been extremely wrong. Plus, he was going to give Melissa a place to stay at least for a month and some money, that was already enough to help her and the baby. He wanted to go on with Hanna, without caring about what Melissa had called 'his reputation'...

 _Screw the reputation, he was in love with Hanna._

"But... I won't have anyone then." Melissa continued.

"That's not my problem. I wouldn't owe you anything, Melissa. What I did for you is already too much. And I'm sorry to remind you, but you're the one who kicked me out of your life." he replied.

She stayed silent, biting her lip. Caleb sighed.

"So... Do you want something to eat?" he asked then, awkwardly.

She looked up at him and raised an eyebrow.

"You will have to wait a little for the cab, so... Eat something, have breakfast. Suit yourself. You know the place, right?" he continued, before taking the last sip of his orange juice and walking to the front door.

"Where are you going?" she asked.

"Taking my beautiful dog out for a walk. Good luck for everything, Melissa. I'll just see you in court. Bye." he replied quickly, opening the door.

She stayed speechless as she watched him closing the door behind his back.

He clearly didn't want to find her home when he would be back.

* * *

Hanna had received some good news in the early morning. Her mom was going to a women weekend organized by one of her friends. That meant that she was alone for the whole weekend, so that she could be with Caleb for all the time without a problem. And then, when her mom would be back, she and Caleb could also tell her the whole truth, or at least she hoped so.

As soon as her mom left the house, she grabbed her mobile and called him, hoping he would sound better than the previous night. She wanted to go to his place just to hear his phone call to the lawyer. He picked up after a couple of rings.

"Hey."

"Hey, are you home?"

"No, actually I'm out with Charlie. Everything okay?"

"Yeah, everything okay. Actually, more than okay..."

"What does it mean?"

Hanna could hear him chuckle. That was a good sign.

"Well... My mom's away for the weekend, so... Yeah, I was planning on coming to your place, but since you're already out, you can come over here. Or, if you prefer, I can go to your place and wait for you there..." she continued.

"No, no, I'll come to your place, alright?" he replied immediately.

Caleb didn't absolutely want Hanna to find out that Melissa was back, pregnant, that she had spent the night at his place and was even probably still there. He had solved the thing, Melissa would be away soon, so she didn't have to know. He was sure about his feelings for Hanna and didn't want her to get the wrong idea.

"Oh, okay. Have you already called the lawyer?" she asked then.

"Not yet. I'll do it as soon as I get there, alright?"

"Yeah, perfect."

"Oh... Can I take Charlie to your place or do you want me to take him back to my place?"

"Are you kidding? Bring him here!" Hanna replied excitedly.

He smiled. Hanna truly loved his dog, like every single thing that was related to him, unlikely _someone else_.

"Good. I'll see you later." he said then.

"Wait, Caleb..."

"Yeah?"

"Are you...okay now? I mean, last night you sounded so weird, and I was a little worried..."

Caleb sighed before replying.

"Yeah, sorry about that. I had a little thing to sort out, but nothing too bad. Anyway, it's okay now, no need to worry."

Hanna was relieved.

"Glad to hear that. Okay, I'll see you later." she said then.

"Sure. I'll be there soon."

"I love you." she added, smiling widely through the speaker.

"I love you too, bye."

"Bye."

* * *

An hour later, Caleb was in front of Hanna's house with Charlie. He rang the doorbell and Hanna opened the door smiling brightly.

"Good morning, beautiful." Caleb smiled back, leaning in to place a light kiss on her lips.

She just stood there after that, smiling even more.

"Uhm... Let me just tie him somewhere..." he mumbled then, nodding toward Charlie and taking a look around.

Hanna didn't have a garden outside, so Caleb thought about tying Charlie to prevent him to run in the middle of the street.

"Oh, please... You're not tying him anywhere. You both come in." Hanna replied, raising her eyebrows and opening the door widely.

"You sure? He's losing a lot of fur lately." he warned her.

"I have to clean up the whole house anyway." she shrugged.

Caleb smiled and entered the house with Charlie, and once inside, he unhooked the dog's leash. Charlie just lied on the carpet of the hallway, as Caleb chuckled and Hanna stroked the dog's head.

"As long as he doesn't pee or anything, he's more than welcome." she commented, grabbing Caleb's hand and leading him to the couch with her.

"He's a polite dog... Just like his owner." he smirked, quickly turning her around and throwing her on the couch before jumping on top of her and starting to make out.

Hanna laughed in the middle of his eager kisses, but before he could go further, she pulled away and linked her hands behind his neck.

"So... What was last night about? Why you sounded so worried on the phone?" she asked again.

He sighed, sitting up and pulling her onto his lap.

"I already told you... It wasn't a big deal. It's okay now, don't worry." he replied.

Hanna roamed an hand through his short locks.

"You sure? Look, if you're still not completely sure about the divorce, I can keep waiting." she whispered.

"You waited long enough. And so did I. I'm sure."

"Alright. I just don't want you to feel pressed."

"I don't. Trust me." he smiled up reassuringly at her.

"Okay." she nodded, smiling back and linking her hands behind her neck again.

"In fact... I'm gonna call my lawyer right now." he continued, pulling out his phone from the pocket of his jeans.

Hanna just watched him putting his phone on his ear and waiting for his lawyer to pick up.

"Mr Ford? Good morning, I'm Caleb Rivers." he said at some point.

Hanna couldn't believe he was actually and finally doing that, in front of her. She felt so happy but also so lucky.

"Yes, the doctor. That's me. However, I'm calling you because I want to apply for the divorce from my wife, Melissa Raymond-Rivers." Caleb continued, licking his lower lip.

He said it. He actually said it.

"I know, I know... It's been a year, but I should have done it so long ago already, so..." he added.

Hanna stared at him for the rest of the call.

"Alright. I'll see you soon, mr Ford. Thank you. Bye." he finally concluded, before hanging up and throwing his phone on her coffee table.

"That's it." he shrugged then, looping his arms around Hanna's waist.

Hanna took a deep breath.

"You did it." she commented.

"I did it." he repeated, smiling.

"How does it feel?"

Caleb took a moment before replying.

"It feels...right, to be honest."

Hanna couldn't help but smile down at him. Of course he was doing it for himself, but she knew he was also doing it for her.

"It won't be immediate though, clearly. It will take some time because I'll have to deal with a lot of burocratic stuff and everything, but... Well, I did it the first step." he continued.

"You will have to see her again." Hanna said instinctively.

Caleb pursed his lips. He had already seen her again, just the night before, after almost a year, and he had left her in his house a few hours earlier. But now she was going to leave, so Hanna didn't have to know. He just wanted Hanna, no one else.

"I will. But believe me, she won't have any effect on me." he replied then.

Actually, he couldn't lie to himself. When the night before Melissa had held his hand and kissed his cheek, it wasn't like he hadn't felt anything. But she wasn't a stranger, she was the woman he though would have been the woman of his life, so he had assumed it was normal to feel a little tingle inside in front of her. But it was not even similar to what he felt for Hanna.

"How can you be so sure?" Hanna asked, sounding a little worried.

Caleb furrowed his eyebrows and cupped her chin, gently pulling her head at his level.

"Hey... Look at me." he whispered.

She did so, then he continued.

"I love you, okay? I loved her, that's true, but I don't anymore. The person I do love is you. Only you, Hanna. If I managed to do this step and finally apply for the divorce, it's because of you. _Thanks_ to you. My life finally got over my marriage with Melissa and you made it possible. _You_. That's why I'm so sure."

Hanna immediately felt relieved hearing his words and seeing the look he had into his eyes. The whole thing totally melted her. She nodded and smiled at him before reconnecting their lips again. He immediately parted his ones for her, and her tongue slid into his mouth, finding his. Their tongues made up a slow and rhytmic dance, and as Caleb cupped her face to keep her head firm, he felt one of her hands slip underneath his shirt. She brushed her fingertips over his abdomen, and his muscles tightened under her soft touch. He hissed and slowly started lying back down on the couch, but then the doorbell rang and she immediately jumped off him.

"Shit." she growled, getting up.

"Are you waiting for someone?" he asked, quickly fixing his shirt.

"Definitely not." she replied, walking to the front door, almost stumbling upon a sleeping Charlie before looking through the peephole.

She sighed before turning back to Caleb.

"It's Aria, Spencer and Emily... My bestfriends." she told him.

"Oh..." he murmured, awkwardly getting up from the couch.

"I didn't know they were coming over, I swear. But now... I guess it's time for you to meet them."

Caleb shrugged.

"That's...okay. My car's parked outside, I don't think I can't hide in the closet at this point." he added, eventually smiling.

She made a little smile toward him before turning back to the door. She took a deep breath and opened it.

"Han, hey." Emily smiled, stepping inside.

"Whose that awesome BMW parked outside? Looks pretty expensive..." Aria commented, stepping inside as well.

"Is your mom with one of her rich friends?" Spencer asked, stepping inside after Aria.

"Oh, my God! Who is this little cutie here?" Emily exclaimed then, catching sight of Charlie.

Aria got on her knees near Emily as she stroked the dog's fur along with her.

"Your mother's friend has a dog?" Spencer asked, raising an eyebrow.

Hanna sighed deeply before replying.

"My mom's not home, actually. And no one of her friends is here."

"Oh... So... Whether you bought a dog or...you have company?" Aria asked, standing up.

"Hi, girls." Caleb announced himself, appearing from the living room.

Hanna's three friends looked at him almost in shock, even though they had already guessed Hanna and doctor Rivers had a thing by now.

"Uhm... I'm Caleb, but I guess you know me. And...he's Charlie, my dog." he continued, awkwardly.

"Oh... Hi. I'm Aria." Aria spoke up, attempting a smile.

"Nice to meet you, Aria." Caleb smiled charmingly at her.

"I'm Emily." the other brunette said.

"Nice to meet you, Emily." Caleb smiled at Emily as well.

"And I'm Spencer." Spencer concluded.

"Nice to meet you too, Spencer." Caleb told her too, smiling.

"Uhm..." Hanna mumbled, coming closer to Caleb.

"So... Are you two together?" Emily asked.

Hanna grabbed Caleb's hand and nodded, interlacing their fingers.

"Yeah. And... I'm no longer with my wife, before you guys ask. I'm about to divorce." Caleb smiled, shrugging.

"We got together a month and something ago. And Caleb already wasn't with his wife anymore. They broke up so long ago, but... He just didn't want people to know." Hanna continued.

"I didn't want people to know because I was ashamed since my wife cheated on me and stole some of my money before leaving the country with her lover. I've been alone for ten months before Hanna made me realize that I still had a chance in my life and that I didn't need to be ashamed about anything. So... I moved on now, I'm ready to divorce from my wife... And I'm with Hanna." he concluded, squeezing her hand and smiling at her friends.

"Oh..." Aria murmured, awkwardly nodding.

There were a few seconds of silence before Caleb spoke up again.

"If Hanna didn't tell you anything until now, it was just because I didn't feel like doing it. She wanted to, but I was scared of letting people know. So... I'm the guilty one here."

Hanna smiled over at him.

"However, I should probably give you all some girly time. I'll see you later?" he said then, looking at Hanna.

"Oh, no, _we_ should probably give you guys some...time." Emily interjected.

"Hey, wait up everyone. No one's going anywhere. Now we're going to have breakfast all together. No one of you is excused." Hanna said with decision, smiling from her friends to Caleb.

"Are you...sure?" Aria asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Totally. You okay with that, right?" Hanna replied to Aria and then whispered to Caleb, who answered with a nod and another smile.

"One condition, girls... I'll cook." he announced then, turning to them.

When Hanna saw all of her three friends smiling over at him, she felt truly happy and proud to have Caleb by her side. She didn't fear anymore to reveal the world that he was the one she loved. And Caleb was more and more convinced about the divorce and had already forgotten about Melissa's return.

But would everything be so easy?

* * *

 **A/N: Hey, guys! I hope the update was quick enough :) Oh my God, your reviews were awesome! Your comments about Melissa nailed it! Hahaha :D Thanks for making me laugh xD And I also loved your comments about the poor Charlie who had to left the room because of her :( Anyways, seems like Caleb chose Hanna... At least for now :P I'm not gonna lie, the story isn't ending yet, so... You guys will have to expect some other plot twist and stuff ;) But, again, I'm sure you won't be disappointed when the story's actually over :) Trust me, as always ;) And I hope you liked the meeting between Caleb and the girls, I think it was time :) Oh, yeah, I used "Raymond" as Melissa's last name because I remind you all that she's not Spencer's sister in this story, so I just made up a name which wasn't "Hastings" :D So, I'll try to update as soon as possible even though I should study a little because my University classes are about to restart :( Ugh, I really don't want to... But don't worry, I'm still here :) Thank you so so much for reading and reviewing! Let me know if you enjoyed the chapter ;) Love you guys! Hope you're gonna have a nice weekend :) xx -Atramea.**


	17. Chapter 17

Hours later, Hanna and Caleb were cuddled up on her couch, watching a movie and eating these chocolate popcorns Hanna had made.

Her friends had left a little earlier, after their breakfast had turned into an actual lunch all together. The girls seemed to truly like Caleb. They had asked him about some people of the town who were his patients, laughing when he had revealed some specific details about their oral hygiene. He had also helped Emily to configure her new iPhone, since he was very good with technology too, he and Spencer had had a long talk about various colleges, while Aria had asked him the recipes of basically anything he had prepared that day. The three had ended up staying at Hanna's for the whole afternoon, playing with Charlie and having some other little chats with Caleb and Hanna for the rest of the time after eating.

Caleb had cooked so many things that now he and Hanna weren't hungry and didn't want to have dinner, that's why they were having just a cup of copcorn while watching the movie.

"They like you." she murmured out of the blue, with her cheek pressed against the side of his shoulder and her eyes glued to the screen.

"You think?" he asked, taking another popcorn from the cup they were sharing.

"Yeah. I know them, it's not like they were pretending to like you. They really do."

"Well, I'm glad about that. And I like them too. They all seem nice."

"They are. And they obviously appreciated your cooking skills. I have to admit it, choosing to cook for them, I mean, three girls, was pretty risky, but... It was a great idea, in the end. I mean, how can someone not fall in love with you after trying your French toasts?"

Caleb laughed at that.

"Aria told me they were the best she had ever tried." he added then.

"They were excellent, indeed. But... You know, once Aria also said you were hot... Actually, I think she said exactly ' _fucking_ hot'."

Caleb chuckled.

"Seriously?" he asked then, rubbing his hand over her arm.

"Yep. I need to warn her to keep her hands off you... Well, all of them. Even Emily. Yeah, she's lesbian, but you could also turn her straight... I mean, look at you..." she joked then, raising her eyebrows at him.

He laughed before lowering his head to kiss her.

"Are you the jealous kind of girl, maybe?" he asked after pulling away, grinning.

"Who knows? I guess you'll find out." she replied, smirking back.

He was about to kiss her again, but she moved back as he looked totally disappointed. She smirked again and grabbed a popcorn, bringing it to his lips. He furrowed his eyebrows and Hanna laughed slightly.

"Come on!" she giggled.

"You remember what happened last time we fed each other, right?" he asked, raising his eyebrow and not holding back his cocky grin.

Hanna rolled her eyes, but fed him anyway. After that, she straightened up on the couch and completely turned her body to him, kneeling on the cushions and starting to kiss the side of his neck. He laughed slightly at the light tickling feeling, then she lifted her head and crashed her lips against his. The cup of popcorns they were sharing fell to the ground, and they shared a deep kiss before he pulled away, smiling at her.

"You know, I should probably take Charlie outside for a walk. Just in case he has to pee or something, you know... I don't want him to cause you any trouble here. He's been inside for quite a long by now. Then, once I make sure he's okay, I'll come back here, alright?" he told her.

She smiled back at him and nodded.

"Alright. But don't take too long, you guys." she added then.

Caleb shook his head and pecked her lips quickly before getting up from the couch and walking toward Charlie, who had already started eating some of the popcorns Hanna and Caleb had let fall to the floor.

* * *

When Caleb came back, he found the door open. He got inside and closed it, as Charlie lied back down on the carpet of the hallway.

"Han? We're back!" he called, taking the leash off Charlie.

"I'm upstairs!" she replied, loud enough to make him hear.

"Alright, bud. Stay here." Caleb said to his dog, stroking his soft head.

He got upstairs, assuming Hanna was in her room, probably getting ready for the night.

"Charlie's downstairs, we—" he started, before freezing once he reached the doorframe of her bedroom.

Hanna was standing there, completely naked. Caleb swallowed hard, looking at her from head to toe.

"Oh..." he murmured.

"So? Don't you come in?" she smirked.

Biting his bottom lip, he slowly walked to her, this time completely focused on her eyes, despite it wasn't easy. He placed his hands on each of her shoulders, slowly rubbing them down her arms before reaching her hands and grabbing them.

"You know... I've never been in your room before..." he whispered casually, interlacing their fingers and biting his lip again.

"I know, that's why we should celebrate..."

Then she abruptly pulled him to her, kissing him fiercely while backing toward her bed. She fell on her back on the mattress and pulled him on top of her before pulling away.

"We were interrupted the last two times we tried to do this... There's no way I'm gonna stop now..." she whispered, nibbling at his ear.

He moaned slightly before kissing the side of her neck, reaching then her collarbone. His hands cupped each of her breasts as she closed her eyes and gripped his hair.

"Are you really letting me invade your own bed?" he whispered against her skin.

She just nodded, as a sigh escaped from her lips when he began massaging her breasts, closing her hardening nipples between his thumb and index. He moved his head lower, on her belly, kissing all the way through until he was low _enough_. He left his grasp on her breasts to move his hands on each of her thighs, gently spreading her legs. Then, he glanced up at her before burying his face in between her legs. Hanna immediately arched her back feeling Caleb's mouth connected to her body. He just kissed and sucked her clit for a minute before shoving his tongue inside of her. At that, Hanna closed a fist through his hair and bit hard on her bottom lip, squeezing her eyes to hold back her moans. He gripped her thighs while tasting her, and he didn't use too long to make his tongue hit that something inside of her which pushed her over the edge. Hanna released her grasp through his hair to grip hard the sheets of her bed, and mumbled Caleb's name through her gritted teeth as she let herself go, coming into his mouth. He licked her all and pulled away from her only after she finished, grinning up at her flushed face.

Caleb pulled himself up on the mattress on his knees, then offered his hand to Hanna for her to do the same. Once they were both kneeling on the mattress, he brought her head to his level and reconnected their lips again. Hanna could still taste a little of herself into the kiss, but it didn't bother her. While kissing, she lifted the hem of Caleb's shirt and then he quickly threw it away, reluctantly stopping to make out to do that, but the second after their mouths were once again over each other. Hanna moved her hands to his jeans, undoing the button and unzipping them, still busy with kissing. She pushed them down a little, revealing a pair of black Calvin Klein's which looked like they were exploding. She put one of her hands on his erection, still trapped into his boxers, starting to massage him, torturingly slowly. He hissed into her mouth, closing a fist through her hair. Then, he pulled away for a moment, just to look into her eyes. They were both flushed and panting. After sharing an intimate look, Hanna helped him pull his jeans and boxers as low as possible, because he didn't want to waste time taking them off for good along with his shoes. Once they were at his ankles, she pushed him down on the mattress and straddled him. She took his member into her hand and moved it up and down his length, stroking its head with the pad of her thumb. Caleb took her head between his hands and pulled her down on top of him, kissing her over and over again as she let go of his member to cup his face as well, spreading her legs over his waist in the process, straddling him. Hanna pulled away when she allowed him to enter her, closing her eyes and digging her fingernails into his muscular shoulders. Caleb grunted, moving his arms to her sides as she started rocking herself on top of him. Their faces were still only a few inches apart, so he demanded her lips again, kissing her while indulging her moves. Hanna then kissed down his jawline, reaching his neck and then stopping to suck on his Adam's apple, as Caleb titled his head back into her pillow and closed his eyes in bliss, sighing. After a while, she lifted herself and started riding him with a quicker pace, as his hands gripped her hips.

Their sighs followed one another into the room, as Hanna's movements became less coordinated and Caleb's body got tenser and tenser as she kept going. She felt his cock start throbbing inside of her and she bit her bottom lip trying to hold herself back a little longer. She was barely moving by now, too close to her orgasm, so Caleb overturned the situation and rolled her over so that she was underneath him. He kissed her lips and found a comfortable spot into her slightly sweaty neck for his head, slamming himself into her a couple of times more before she reached her peak for the second time that night, moaning his name and tugging at his hair. He stilled for a second, waiting for her to open her eyes again before giving one last push into her body, finally allowing himself to release his load inside her as he looked into her deep blue eyes.

* * *

"Did I mention how beautiful you are without any make up on?" he whispered, rubbing the tip of his nose against hers.

Caleb had finally taken the rest of his clothes off, lying naked under the blankets beside Hanna, both turning on their sides to face each other. She blushed and giggled before kissing him gently. Then, he buried his face into her neck and breathed in deeply before sighing happily.

"God, I love the smell of your skin..." he muttered, barely understandably because his face was totally drowned into the crook of her neck.

She smiled at his sweetness before finding a more comfortable position for her legs, snagging them in between his ones, still under the blankets.

"You know... We should take a trip together soon." he told her.

"Really?" she smiled.

"Really. Wherever you want. The choice is yours."

"Sounds...great."

He smiled again and moved a strand of her hair behind her ear.

"You know, it sucks when you want to take a trip but you don't have anyone to go with. I love travelling. I've been planning a trip for months, but... I didn't want to go alone. I think that trips are something that if shared are so much better. It's like you live them more deeply. Anyways, I also had to work, so I just couldn't. But now... Well, I think that I'm closing the studio for summer after next week. So we're both gonna be free and... We can just leave and take a break from everything for a while. Well, if you want to, of course." he continued.

Hanna smiled widely at him once again.

"If I want to? God, I just wonder why we didn't meet sooner..." she whispered.

He sighed.

"Tell me about it... So do I." he muttered then, and it couldn't be more true.

"Can we stay together tomorrow too?" she asked then.

"Is that even a question?"

She smiled at his reply.

"How about we're going on a ride with my boat tomorrow?" he asked then.

"Seriously?"

"Yeah. Why not? Have you ever been on a boat?"

"No, but... It sounds absolutely cool." she replied excitedly.

"Oh, it is. I'll teach you how to drive it."

She laughed at that.

"You seem to really like...explorating." she added then, moving her hand up and down his arm.

"I do." he smiled, stroking her hair.

"Can I...ask you something?"

He furrowed an eyebrow.

"I thought you knew you could ask me anything by now..." he commented, smiling slightly.

"Yeah, I know but... Well, I wondered many times where you and Melissa went on your honeymoon." she blurted out.

Caleb's expression changed and he sighed.

"Uh... We went to Cuba." he replied shortly.

"How was it?"

Caleb pursed his lips, scratching his head awkwardly.

"Hanna..." he murmured.

"No, I mean... How was Cuba, not...the honeymoon itself."

He stayed silent for a few seconds before shrugging and then replying.

"It's a great place. Good people, wonderful beaches, amazing music... Everything's wonderful down there."

Hanna stayed silent for a little before speaking again.

"I'm sorry, I just wanted to... Whatever, I shouldn't have asked."

Caleb sighed again before reaching out to stroke her cheek.

"No, it's okay. You know that, she's out of my life... Now more than ever." he commented.

"What do you mean?" she asked, furrowing an eyebrow.

Caleb bit his lip and quickly shook his head.

"I mean that I'm applying for the divorce, so... Yeah, I'm like...kicking her out of my life for good now." he replied then, smiling reassuringly at her.

Hanna mirrored his smile.

"Yeah, right... It makes me feel so lucky. I don't know if I deserve such a man like you..." she whispered then, cuddling up to him.

He rolled on his back and pulled her closer, kissing her head as she settled down against his chest.

"You would probably deserve so much better than a man messed up like me..." he whispered.

"Oh, shut up." she smiled as she closed her eyes.

"So... You're letting me spend the night here in your bed, huh?" he asked, gently roaming his fingers through her hair.

"Absolutely." she whispered, moaning slightly at the relaxing feeling of his fingers massaging her head and nape.

"Should I take Charlie outside?" he whispered back.

"No, let him sleep inside. I'm sure he loves the carpet of the hallway. Plus, he's a polite dog, isn't he?"

"Totally. So... Think about a place where you wanna go on a trip while you try to sleep, okay? I'll take you there as soon as possible. Just... Not Cuba." he whispered.

Hanna chuckled against his chest.

"Okay... Not Cuba. Anyway, don't worry, Europe inspires me more..." she whispered then, tangling her legs with his under the blankets.

"Alright. So... Italy? France? Spain? England? I don't know... Iceland?" he whispered back, moving his hand down her back to rest it on her ass.

"I'm not sure yet. I'll think about it." she murmured, placing her hand on his abdomen.

Caleb kissed the top of her head and nuzzled his nose into her hair.

"Okay, get some sleep now." he whispered then, noticing she was about to pass out.

"Yeah."

Caleb closed his eyes too, holding her closer to him, without complaining about the uncomfortable feeling of her cold feet pressed against his calf.

"Um... Caleb?" she whispered suddenly.

"Yeah, what is it?"

"Thanks for today. I had a great time." she murmured weakly.

He smiled and opened his eyes to admire her cute sleepy face.

"Anytime, baby. And tomorrow will be even better, I promise." he whispered.

Hanna placed a small kiss against his chest.

"I love you." she whispered then, still on the edge of falling asleep.

"I love you too. Goodnight." he whispered back, but Hanna had fallen asleep by then.

Caleb closed his eyes too, but then immediately opened them hearing a noise. He got relaxed and smiled when he saw it was just Charlie who had entered the room.

"Buddy, are you feeling lonely downstairs?" he whispered to the dog.

Charlie just lied down, right on Caleb's boxers, which were on the floor. He laughed seeing that.

"Whatever, you can stay. But keep being a polite dog... Don't peek over here." he added then, winking at him while nodding toward Hanna.

Charlie closed his eyes as well, as Caleb smiled. Then, he looked down at the asleep girl between his arms and wished things between them would always stay that way. He kissed her forehead and closed his eyes again, finally falling asleep.

* * *

 **A/N: Hello, everyone :) I finally managed to update! So... How was this chapter? I know nothing too special happened, but I needed to keep things quiet for now because next chapter will be definitely more dynamic :P So I hope you enjoyed a little of Haleb fluff and also the hot scene... I felt like I wrote the last too long ago, haha :D As usual, I want to thank everyone of you who keeps reading, reviewing and following this story. You guys make me really happy because I know someone appreciates my work :) Don't worry, there will be more scenes with Caleb and the girls, so if you want to see him with them again, well, you will :) I'm happy you liked their first meeting, anyway :) So, like I said, next chapter is gonna be kind of crazy, so be prepared ;) I know you hate her, but Melissa will clearly be involved in it, lol :D Okay, it's 3 am here in my country, so I'd better go to sleep now :) I hope you're gonna leave me a review, they always put a smile on my face, plus when Melissa is mentioned they also become pretty funny, so... Haha :D Alright, thanks for reading this time too! And thanks Elizabeth for wishing me good luck for University... I always need some of that :) Lots of love to all of you guys! xx -Atramea.**


	18. Chapter 18

Hanna woke up to an empty space next to her in bed. She sat up and took a look around the room, only to spot Charlie sleeping on the floor. None of Caleb's clothes was there anymore. She rubbed her eyes as she yawned, wondering where Caleb could be, but then she heard the flush of the toilet, and a second later Caleb got back into the room, fully dressed. She smiled up at him as he approached her.

"Good morning." he grinned, bending down to peck her lips.

"I thought you were gone..." she mumbled then, as he sat on the mattress next to her.

"I just had to pee." he shrugged.

"And why are you dressed?"

"Because I need to go. I want our day on boat to last as long as possible. But first, I need to stop by my place to take a shower, put on some clean clothes and give Charlie something to eat. Then, I'm going to get the boat ready for our little excursion, and when I'm done, I'll come back here to pick you up." he smiled.

"Can't you stay a little longer?" she groaned, looping her arms around his neck.

"Of course." he whispered, as she pulled him closer to kiss him.

Hanna pulled him down with her, so he lied beside her, on his side, circling her waist still covered by the blankets. Then, he placed his head in the crook of her neck and closed his eyes, drowning into her sweet smell.

"All of this seems too good to be true..." she sighed then, running her fingers through Caleb's short hair.

"Well... It's too good but it's also true..." he muttered, his lips tickling her neck as he moved them to speak.

Hanna smiled, then he moved his body on top of hers, straddling her. He placed his arms on either side of her to sustain his own body and lowered his head to reach hers, capturing her lips in his. She opened her mouth and granted him access. Her hands came up from under the blankets and grabbed his, interwining their fingers together. After a minute, he pulled away and grinned down at her.

"Okay, we'd better stop here, otherwise we won't do our little excursion by boat today because we'll probably spend the rest of the day in bed." he told her.

"Yeah, maybe you're right." she sighed.

He lowered his head once again to give her one last peck before lifting himself up and returning to stand on the floor of her bedroom.

"So... You do whatever you need to, don't take any rush, okay? I'll come to pick you up in around an hour and a half, so I have enough time to take a shower at my place and prepare the boat... Anyway, wait before having breakfast... We'll have it together." he told her gently, as he fixed his hair watching his reflection in the mirror of her room.

"On the boat?" Hanna raised her eyebrows, smiling.

"Of course." he winked at her, patting Charlie's back.

The dog immediately stood up, yawning loudly and causing Hanna to giggle.

"C'mon, buddy, let's go." Caleb whispered then.

"See you later." she grinned at the pair.

He smiled again at her and stole her a kiss before finally exiting her bedroom and, seconds later, her house with Charlie by his side.

* * *

Caleb came back to his place, hoping not to find Melissa still there. He entered the house and everything seemed quiet. Sighing, he gave some food to Charlie before hopping into the shower. When he came out, everything was still quiet.

Melissa had really left.

He slipped into a pair of black boxers and then grabbed his mobile. He needed to be sure that Melissa was in the hotel and not somewhere else planning who-knows-what against him. So, he dialed the number of the hotel and a receptionist picked up.

"Hello, it's Hotel Royal, what may we do for you?"

"Good morning. I reserved a room yesterday, for a month, for Melissa Rivers. She was supposed to be there since yesterday. Is she?"

"Uh... Yes. Yes, she came, sir."

"So she's there?"

"We're not supposed to give...private information, sir."

"Look... I'm doctor Caleb Rivers, her husband. I reserved the room 120, yesterday morning around eight. Do you need any more proof or you just tell me if she's there?" Caleb grunted.

When the receptionist heard it was the doctor, he immediately changed his tone.

"Um... Doctor, I'm sorry, I thought you knew what happened..." he said then.

Caleb furrowed his eyebrows.

"Why? What happened?" he asked.

"An ambulance came to pick her up last night. She had a sudden illness. I guess she's in hospital now..."

Caleb remained speechless for a moment.

"What exactly happened?" he murmured then.

"I don't really know, doctor. But I guess they took her to the local hospital. She's most likely still there, since she hasn't come back here."

"Alright, thank you." Caleb muttered before hanging up the phone.

He sighed deeply and rubbed his eyes before quickly getting dressed. He threw on the first thing he found and exited the house, hopping into his car and leaving Charlie in the garden. He even forgot his phone.

He needed to know what happened to Melissa and, most of all, if her baby was okay.

* * *

Hanna was in front of her open closet, trying to make up her mind about what to wear for her boat day with Caleb. She didn't want to be too elegant, but she didn't want to be too casual either. Even though she knew Caleb would appreciate whatever thing she would wear, she wanted to surprise him. Then, her phone started buzzing from her nightstand. She was already freaking out it was late and she hadn't noticed it so Caleb was calling her, but actually it was just Spencer.

"Hey, Spence." she picked up, climbing on the bed.

"Hey, Han. Are you... _busy_?"

"What do you mean by 'busy'?" Hanna giggled.

"Oh, c'mon... Is Caleb still there? Am I interrupting some kind of wild morning sex?"

"Oh my God, Spence!" Hanna laughed loudly.

"What? Am I?"

"No! No, you're not! Caleb left a little while ago, he's getting his boat ready... We're gonna spend the day on his boat."

"Wow..."

"Romantic, huh?" Hanna sighed happily.

"Well, yeah... You really made a good choice this time..."

"Said the girl who was wrinkling up her nose every damn time I mentioned doctor Rivers."

"I thought he was married, okay? I mean, he's still married but he's no longer with his wife, so... Well, whatever, you understood me."

"Yeah, I did. So, why did you call?"

"Well... I was going to ask you if you and Caleb wanted to come tonight with me and Toby at this new place a friend of his is opening. Like a double date, you know... But I guess you'll be pretty busy on your boat."

"Well... I'll talk to him later, seeing if he wants to. I mean, we have the whole day to be on boat, maybe he wants to go out then, so... I'll let you know." Hanna interrupted Spencer.

"Okay, let me know. But we do need to have some private girly talk about your guy."

"Really?"

"Of course. Look, the girls and I yesterday were all thinking the same thing, but we clearly couldn't ask you some _details_ in front of him..."

"What do you mean?" Hanna giggled.

"Don't you get it? You need to tell us how good he is in bed!"

Hanna laughed again before answering.

"Okay, you all have to stop seeing hin like this huge sex God! It's embarassing!"

"Oh, c'mon... Just looking at him is already enough. Wait... Does he suck?"

"No, he doesn't. And yes, actually he kinda is the sex God you guys think he is, but I'm not going to have this conversation anytime soon, so... I'll just talk to you later, Spence."

"Whatever. Anyway, I'm happy for you. He seems a good man, you were right. I'm sorry for the things I told you when... You know..."

Hanna smiled before replying.

"Never mind. You guys didn't know the whole story. Thank you so much."

"Yeah, well... Have fun on the boat."

"I will." Hanna replied with a grin.

"Bye."

"Bye."

And then Hanna hung up. She almost felt guilty about how happy she was. Sighing, she got up from the bed and came back to her closet to choose her clothes for the day.

* * *

Caleb arrived at the hospital the sooner he could. He asked the receptionist where Melissa was, then he quickly reached her room. She was lying in bed, but she was awake and seemed okay. When she saw Caleb, however, her expression turned into a surprised one.

"Caleb?" she murmured, looking up at him.

"What happened? Are you okay?" he asked in reply, slowly entering the room.

"Yeah, I... I just—"

"Is the baby okay?" he cut her off.

Melissa sighed.

"Yeah, thank God. I... I had a placental abruption. I had to get a surgery last night, because the baby was risking, but... We're both fine now. Although I'll have to be stuck in bed for the rest of the time until the childbirth." she answered, sighing.

Caleb nodded slowly.

"Is there something that could cause your abruption?" he asked then.

"Well... I guess my lifestyle lately hasn't been the best." she muttered.

Caleb sighed.

"So... When you can come back to the hotel?" he asked again.

"I don't think I will, actually. If I go back there... I'll be completely alone. You know, the nurse told me there's a clinic for pregnant women who are dealing with difficult pregnancies, not so far from here. I hate the fact that I'll have to stay in a clinic for around four months, but at least I'll have some people who will take care of me and my baby, so... That's my best choice right now. I'm gonna use the money you gave me to pay for the recovery there, and then... Then we'll divorce. I'm sorry, but I don't think I can come to the court given my current condition."

"No, no, don't worry about that. Just think about the baby. That's all that matters right now." he nodded.

"Yeah." Melissa whispered.

Then, a nurse came in, smiling.

"Hi. Do we have daddy here?" she asked.

Caleb was about to reply, but the nurse had already spoken again.

"Alright, so you can see the ultrasound with us. Baby had a little trouble yesterday, but now everything's fine." she continued, putting some cold gel over Melissa's belly.

Caleb stayed silent, then Melissa looked at him.

"Can you stay? Please?" she murmured.

He sighed deeply, but then the he saw a small figure forming on the screen across him and he just became speechless.

"There's your little girl." the nurse smiled.

Melissa smiled widely at the screen before turning to Caleb, who was silent, staring at that same screen.

"Is it a girl?" was the only thing he managed to say, still looking there.

"Yes. I found out just yesterday." Melissa replied.

"Well, everything looks okay. But the situation is still what it is. You need to stay at rest until little girl comes out." the nurse sighed, wiping the gel off Melissa's belly at the end of the ultrasound.

"Yeah, I know. And, about that, I decided to go to the clinic. I'm currently living in a hotel room, so... I'd rather be moved there." Melissa told the nurse.

"Of course. I'll call them to see if they can send us the forms for the recovery." the nurse replied.

But as she was exiting the room, Caleb said something.

"Wait."

The nurse turned around.

"Yes?" she asked.

"They will not be necessary. She's not going there." Caleb continued.

* * *

Hanna was worried.

It was at least two hours since Caleb had left. But he hadn't come back to pick her up yet. She had tried to call him, but he hadn't answered. She didn't know what to do, so, after waiting for another little while, she exited her house thankful that her mom had left the car there, and started driving toward Caleb's house.

When she arrived, she immediately noticed that his car wasn't there. But Charlie was, so Caleb had clearly come back there before going somewhere else. However, knowing where the spare key was, she got in the house. She immediately spotted his mobile on the table. That's why he hadn't answered any of her calls.

"Caleb?" she called, even though it was clear that he wasn't there.

She sighed and sat on his couch, while Charlie lied down at her feet. She waited and waited, and another hour went by. At some point, not knowing what to do, she unlocked his phone to cancel all of her missed calls, and noticed he had called a hotel that morning, a little after leaving her house. She was about to call it back when she heard the engine of a car ouside. She jumped off the couch and went to look outside through the window, as Charlie followed her.

Thank God it was him.

She walked to the front door as he finally entered. Hanna ran to him and threw her arms around him.

"Caleb! Jesus, I was so worried! What happened?" she mumbled, hugging him.

Caleb hugged her back before pulling away.

"I'm sorry, I forgot my phone here." he sighed, running his hands up and down her arms.

"No, don't worry, just... Where have you been? Something happened?"

Caleb sighed again, bending down to stroke Charlie's head.

"Alright, buddy... Go outside now." he told his dog, opening the door for him.

When Charlie was outside, Caleb closed the door and took Hanna by the hand, leading her to the couch before sitting down with her.

"Okay, I need to talk to you." he began.

Hanna furrowed her eyebrows, worried because of the serious tone of his voice.

"Caleb, is everything okay?" she murmured.

"Two days ago, after the dinner at your place, and after you came over and then left, well... I received an unexpected visit."

She stayed silent, and for some reason her mind didn't even think about Melissa. Caleb pursed his lips and looked down when he finally finished his sentence.

"Melissa."

Then, Hanna froze.

"W-What?" she stuttered.

"She came over, like nothing happened. And... She's pregnant with her lover's child, so... She started telling me to give our relationship another try, that her baby could be a chance to rebuild our love, to start over with a family and stuff, and... I told her she was insane." he shrugged, finally looking up at Hanna.

She took a moment to process everything he had just said.

"Why didn't you tell me?" she asked then.

"Because it didn't matter since I didn't want anything of that. And I didn't want you to freak out, it wasn't necessary. Look... She told me that Wren, her guy, took all the money for himself, so now she's alone and with no cash... I just gave her a little help, making her spend the night in the guestroom and then paying a hotel room outside of town where she could stay, but I told her that we were going to divorce soon."

"So... Now why are you telling me? Maybe you went to visit her at the hotel? I saw you called them earlier." Hanna asked nodding toward his mobile on the coffee table, starting to feel a little nervous.

He sighed before replying.

"Things got a little... _complicated_."

"What does that mean?" she asked again, furrowing her eyebrows.

"I called the hotel earlier to know if she went there. I needed to be sure she didn't have any weird idea. But... The receptionist told me she had had a sudden illness, that she had been taken to the local hospital, so... I just went to check on her. I wanted to know if the baby was okay... And also if _she_ was okay."

Hanna sighed and ran a hand through her own hair, closing her eyes. Caleb, then, continued.

"They're both okay, but Melissa had a placental abruption, so... She needs to stay in bed until the day of her childbirth."

Hanna pursed his lips before replying.

"Caleb, look, I'm sorry for what almost happened to her baby, but... I'm not sorry for her. She can't just come here after all she did to you and ask for your forgiveness and support. I don't want you to do all of these things for her. The fact that you paid a hotel room for her is already too much, in my opinion."

Caleb stayed silent and lowered his gaze. At that, Hanna felt that there was something else.

"Caleb? What else did you do for her?" she asked.

"Hanna, I couldn't let her spend the next four months alone in her condition." he murmured.

"So... You paid some private hospital or clinic for her?" Hanna asked then.

Caleb shook his head lightly.

"She was going to ask to be moved to a clinic, actually, but... I stopped her." he added.

"Why?" Hanna asked, perplexed.

"I told her she could stay here until the childbirth. An ambulance will bring her here tomorrow morning."

Hanna was shocked.

"Are you kidding me?" she asked, incredulous.

He just shook his head.

"Why the hell would you do that, Caleb?" she yelled then.

"Alright, calm down. I love _you_ , Hanna. The fact that she'll stay here doesn't mean anything for me and her. I want _you_. I just need to be sure that she and her baby are okay, nothing else."

"So you just want me to _accept_ this absurd thing of you living under the same roof of your wife, ex-wife or whatever she is? You want me to roll over with you between the sheets of your bed while she's in the next room and can get you over there only with a whistle because she can't move?" she snapped, getting up from the couch.

He got up as well and took her hands in his.

"Okay, it won't be like that and you know it. I just... She needs me. She's alone, she only has me..."

"Caleb, you needed her, you were alone and you only had her too when she left you! She didn't care a shit about how you would feel or anything! God, she cheated on you, she stole from you, she just played with you and now you're gonna take her into your house and become her personal male nurse? You're gonna take care of her when she's pregnant with the man she cheated on you with's child? And you're asking me to _understand_ this? How am I supposed to understand?" she snapped again, shaking his hands off hers.

"Okay, look... It's true, she hurt me, _a lot_ , but I'm not like her. I'm not a jerk. That's why I'm not turning her back on her. She was an important person in my life, and I want to help her."

"I know you're not a jerk, but... You could have just paid for the freaking clinic! That way you would have helped her anyway, even though you already helped her enough, in my opinion! Don't you realize that this idea is too kind of you? Don't you realize that I can _not_ understand?"

Caleb sighed deeply, biting his lower lip.

"She may not deserve it, but... I need to do that." he murmured.

Hanna shook her head as tears started forming into her eyes.

"You still love her, don't you?" she murmured, this time softly.

Caleb shook his head with decision.

"No. No, I don't. I love _you_ , Hanna." he added.

She wiped a single tear away from her own cheek.

"Then why are you doing this?" she asked weakly.

Caleb opened his mouth to reply, but then realized he didn't have a proper answer to give her other than the things he had already said, so he just stayed silent.

"Look... I know you have this huge sense of duty, I know your heart is big, and I know that you're full of virtues, probably because your parents raised you very well despite they didn't have much time to do that... That's honorable, Caleb, but... This time you don't have to do this thing. You don't. What happened to Melissa is not your fault. You don't have to fix this, you don't owe her, alright? Again, you already did a lot for her. Now you should think about yourself and stop being so selfless. Seriously, Caleb, you're probably the best person I've ever met, but this... This is not fair. Neither to you...nor to _me_." Hanna continued, speaking gently.

He remained silent for a little while before replying.

"When she came here and was fine, I sent her away. I did it. But now the situation has changed. I didn't change my mind about you or about her, I just... I'll be there for her just until the baby is born, then we'll also divorce, but now... I feel like I need to do this, Hanna. It's just a few months."

"You're doing exactly what she wanted you to do." she muttered, shaking her head.

"Hanna, she didn't have a placental abruption on purpose—"

She cut him off abruptly.

"That's not the point, Caleb! She wanted to keep you close to her since she came back! Now you... You're gonna start growing fond of her unborn baby at the point that you're not gonna be able to let them both go when it's time to! Don't you understand? She's playing with you again, taking advantage of your goodness... She's using you once again and she's gonna have what she wanted!"

"It's not gonna happen, I promise."

"You can't know that! You said we would take a trip together soon, but now we won't anymore because you need to look after her. You said we would tell my mom and other people about us, but I guess we won't do that now that she's here and pregnant. You said so many things, Caleb... And I believed you. Today we were supposed to spend the day together on your boat, and I was so happy... You know, Spencer called me earlier, she said she was happy for me, that you really are the great man I told them you were, and then she asked me if you and I wanted to go out with her and her boyfriend tonight. I was so excited. Today was gonna be so amazing... Instead, here we are. You made me worried sick because you had gone to check on your pregnant wife whom I didn't even know was back in town. And now you want to host her in your house, for the next four months. What am I supposed to think now? What about our trip? What about our plans? What about _us_?"

He sighed before replying.

"Hanna, again, I didn't change my mind about anything. We're gonna take our trip together, we're gonna tell your mom about us, I'm going to divorce, just... It will happen later. But it will, believe me!"

Hanna took a deep breath and wiped her tears away before looking straight into his eyes and speaking again.

"Caleb, I... I'm telling you, I won't accept this thing. I was fine with keeping our relationship as a secret, I was fine with being with you even though you were a married man, I was fine with lying to my mom and friends, but... This is too much to ask for, I'm sorry."

As the words came out of her mouth, her own heart cracked, realizing how true all of that was. He sighed, shaking his head.

"You have to choose... Me or her." she added then, biting her lip.

"I will always choose you, Hanna... I love you!" he insisted.

"Then don't do that!" she pleaded.

He sighed again, running an hand through his hair.

"Why are you making it so hard?" he snapped then.

"It's not hard, Caleb. I'm not asking you to leave her alone in the middle of the street, I'm just asking you not to let her stay here. That's easy. You're the one who sees it hard, here." she replied calmly.

He stayed silent, though.

"Okay, if... If you're ready to lose me and everything we build together in this month and an half just to make sure your adulterer wife is fine, then you made your choice." she affirmed.

He grabbed her arm before she could go away.

"Please, don't leave." he whispered.

"What? Do you want me to spend the night and wait for her to come tomorrow morning? Do you want me to welcome her with open arms and congratulate her on her pregnancy? Well, I'm sorry but I won't."

Caleb turned her to him again.

"Hey..." he whispered, placing his forehead against hers and closing his eyes.

Hanna got relaxed for a second, breathing out and closing her eyes.

"Caleb, I never asked you for anything... This is the very first time, just... Please, don't do that." she whispered, her forehead still pressed against his.

He sighed, cupping her face and stroking her cheeks with his thumbs.

"I love you." was the only thing he whispered in reply.

"Well... That's not enough."

And with that, she abruptly turned around and walked to the door. Caleb didn't stop her. She opened it and turned one last time to him.

"You were the biggest illusion of my life. I knew this was too good to be true." she murmured.

"Han—"

"Save it." she cut him off, exiting and slamming the door shut behind her back.

* * *

 **A/N: Ah, that was sooo hard to write :/ I also apologize for taking so long to update, but unfortunately I needed to restart studying, so... Less time to write :( Now, I know that this chapter is not exactly what you were looking forward to, but it had to happen. I think this is the first Haleb real fight in the story, by the way. So, yeah, I guess that you're probably hating Caleb right now for taking such a decision about Melissa, but... That's it. I think you guys agree with Hanna —I do too—, Caleb is probably being too good to a person who doesn't deserve it at all. But the main point of Caleb in this story is right that: he's a person TOO good. That's what Hanna has to deal with, and that's probably his only shortcoming :/ He just wants to be there for anyone who seems to need him, even though they don't deserve it. He still has to realize that this will mess up his relationship with Hanna, so... Well, we have to see what's gonna happen when he fully realizes it, right? ;) Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the chapter even though it wasn't happy and fluffy like the last ones :) Thank you so much for reading and for all of your wonderful reviews and PMs, you never fail to put a smile on my face despite these days have been full of stress to me :( So, if you want, let me know what you think of this chapter too, and please don't hate me too much haha :P the story isn't over yet ;) Have a nice week everyone, love you! xx -Atramea.**


	19. Chapter 19

Monday.

Hanna had spent the rest of her Sunday crying and yelling at Spencer about Caleb, while he had spent the whole time calling her and knocking on her door, only to be abruptly rejected.

Melissa had come to Caleb's that morning and settled in his guestroom. Caleb had also hired a nurse to take care of her when he wasn't home and to help her when it came to women things, such as her personal hygiene and stuff like that, since he couldn't really help her with that kind of things.

He had just brought her something to eat in bed, and now was slipping into his coat.

"I gotta go to work. Lucy's downstairs, if you need anything." he muttered, smoothing the coat.

"Okay. When will you be back?" Melissa asked.

"Around eight... Maybe sooner, maybe later." he shrugged.

"Fine."

He was getting out of the guestroom when she called him.

"Caleb?"

He stopped on the doorframe and turned around.

"Thank you." she added, smiling gratefully at him.

He just nodded briefly before leaving the house.

* * *

Hanna didn't want to go to work.

She didn't want to see Caleb, at all. She was more than pissed, but now she had to see him because he was her boss. The only thing she was happy about was probably the fact that it would be the last week of work before the summer break. Just twenty-four hours earlier she thought she would spend those vacations with Caleb, though, while now she just wanted to be left alone for the whole summer.

Her mom was back from her weekend and looked totally relaxed. Hanna felt pretty jealous toward her.

"Okay, I'm going to work." she sighed, heading to the front door.

"Okay, honey. When are you going to bring your boyfriend home for dinner so that I can meet him, though?"

Hanna rubbed her hand over her forehead. She _hated_ this.

"Now it's really not the best time, mom. He has... _other things_ to do." she replied then.

"Sounds like a really busy guy." Ashley smiled.

"Yeah... Maybe too much." Hanna muttered before leaving.

* * *

When Hanna entered the studio, she marched toward her office not stopping even for a second to look around. She passed Caleb's door without even noticing if it was close or open. That day she would just work. Caleb had gone back to be just her boss.

She was lucky the day was hectic, since she didn't see him. Caleb didn't have time to stop by her office to say hi or at least _try to_ say hi. However, when he managed to take a little break, he didn't waste any second to come in without knocking, bringing her a cup of coffee.

"Hey." he said awkwardly.

Hanna sighed, not even lifting her gaze, keeping to write down dates and hours for the next two days' appointments on his agenda.

"I... Uh... I brought you coffee." he continued, walking to her desk and placing the cup down.

Once again, she didn't reply, still keeping herself busy. Caleb sighed.

"Are you really gonna act like this around me from now on?" he asked then.

"Are _you_ really gonna pretend that nothing happened?" she finally snapped, looking at him with a sparkle of anger into her eyes.

He sighed once again, taking a seat across her desk. Hanna glared at him at that.

"Don't. If this has nothing to do with work, just don't." she told him with a serious tone.

"Just listen to me for a second, please."

"I don't want to."

"Okay, but you will, because I'm still your boss in here and you can't just kick me out of your office."

Hanna laughed in disbelief.

"Oh, my God! Are you seriously playing the 'boss' card?" she snapped then.

"You're not giving me any choice." he shrugged, leaning forward over her desk.

She sighed and leaned back on her seat, crossing her arms over her chest and looking away from him.

"Look... I'm sorry if I hurt you by hosting Melissa at my place. I didn't mean to." he began.

"But you did." she muttered.

He bit his bottom lip and took a deep breath before continuing.

"It's not such a big deal like you think. I just want to be helpful."

Hanna shook her head lightly but didn't reply, so he went on.

"However... I could really use your help for a couple of things."

At that, she finally crossed his gaze and widened her eyes at him, laughing in disbelief again.

"I'm sorry, what? You got to be kidding me!" she said.

"Han, just listen to me..."

"No, look, the more you speak, the more bullshit I hear. How can you ask for my help? How can you? You're living again with your wife, you basically chose her over me just yesterday and now you even dare ask me for help? Why would I help you? I even thought you were going to apologize for a second..." she snapped furiously.

"I didn't choose her over you and you know that." he pointed out.

Hanna shook her head repeatedly, looking at the ceiling.

"Han, the only things I want are for you not to be mad at me anymore and for Melissa not to be stuck in a hospital bed alone for the next four months." he began again, trying to keep a quiet tone.

"Well, I really don't think you can have both things. Plus, you already made your choice."

"Again, I didn't choose anything. Just... Melissa staying at my place maybe is going to be just a temporary thing, if you just listen to me."

Hanna rubbed her forehead and closed her eyes, trying to stay calm. He took her silence as his clue to go on.

"Could you keep Charlie for a little while?"

Hanna raised her eyebrows.

"You're kicking him out? Seriously? Oh, yeah, right... The bitch who hates animals." she growled then, remembering what Caleb had told her about Melissa a while earlier.

"Melissa didn't say anything about Charlie, anyway it's not just about that. I'm not kicking him out and I would never do that. And like I didn't choose Melissa over you, I didn't choose her over him either. I just want Charlie to be treated well, and I currently can't, or better... I'm afraid I won't be able to. Of course I don't want to leave him, I would never do that, but I don't have anyone to entrust him to...besides you. I mean, he loves you, and I know he's gonna be treated as a prince if he's staying with you. I won't worry if he's with you. He's very important to me, he's my bestfriend, and I... I totally trust you. If you don't want to see me again after everything, okay, but... I'll come to take him back. Please, Hanna. Just a walk a day, and he'll be fine. He's an angel and you know it. It's gonna be just for a little while. But if you don't want to, I get it. He'll just stay with me and I'll try to figure something out."

She sighed and took a moment before finally answering.

"Fine, I'll take him. But I'm doing this for Charlie, not for you. I don't want him to feel like a burden in there."

Caleb couldn't hold back a smile.

"Charlie would never be a burden to me, but... Thank you. I really appreciate it. I know he's gonna be fine with you." he told her then.

"What's the second thing you'd need help for?" she sighed.

Caleb pursed his lips before replying.

"Well... That's more like...a _plan_. It's pretty complicated... Do you think we can talk about it after work?"

She chuckled.

"Oh, yeah? And where? At my place, with my mom? Or better at yours, with Melissa?" she added.

"Let me just treat you to something to drink at the bar at the corner of the street. Please."

He had a totally pleading look into his eyes.

"I thought we couldn't show up together in public." she said.

"I don't care a shit about that anymore."

"Really?" she narrowed her eyes.

He nodded.

"Like I said, the fact Melissa is staying at my place didn't change anything about what I had decided. You're the one I want. If people see us together, whatever, they'll start getting used to it..." he continued.

"Who told you that's still what I want?" she asked then.

"Look, I know I messed up, but... I'm not gonna let you go. And when all of this is sorted out, I'll take you to our trip to Italy. If we're lucky and my plan goes the way is supposed to, we can even go there in just a few weeks."

Hanna raised her eyebrows at him.

"I said I still had to decide the destination." she commented simply.

He smiled.

"Well, still, wherever you want to go. And just for the record, I didn't forget our excursion in boat, either." he said then.

They shared a long silent look before Caleb caught sight of the clock of Hanna's office.

"Okay, I need to get back there. I'll... I'll see you later. Don't go away, please." he said as he got up from the chair.

Hanna sighed without replying.

"Oh, and drink that. It's getting cold." Caleb added, nodding toward her coffee before winking at her and opening the door.

When he got out and close the door behind his back, Hanna leaned back in her seat and sighed deeply, closing her eyes.

"Screw you, doctor Rivers." she muttered, knowing she was giving in to him.

* * *

After his daily work was over, on perfect time, Caleb got in Hanna's office, now dressed in a blue shirt and a pair of jeans.

"You ready?" he asked.

"Look... I'd like to go home early, so you'd better not use too long." she muttered, getting up from her seat and grabbing her purse.

He nodded and walked down the hallway after her, locking the door behind them once they were out of the studio.

They got to the bar just five minutes later. Five completely silent minutes later. Once they were inside, he gave her a nod toward a table.

"You can take a seat. Just tell me what you want, so I order at the counter and then I come." he added.

"Uh... I'll go for a soda."

Caleb insitinctively furrowed his eyebrows, thinking she would want something... _stronger_.

"What? I don't want to drink any alcohol, that's it. And no, I'm not pregnant. Even if, well... Maybe next time I'll make sure to actually get knocked up by you, so that you—" Hanna quickly snapped then, before Caleb cut her off.

"Alright, don't freak out. I just asked what you wanted... A soda it is."

He smiled that small grin of his before turning around, shaking his head, amused. Hanna sighed and walked to the table rolling her eyes. She was acting really childish and she knew that, she was hoping he would feel uncomfortable with that, but he clearly wasn't, like _at all_. So she just sat down, tapping her perfectly-manicured fingernails on the wood. Caleb came back shortly after, taking a seat across her.

"They're gonna bring us the drinks soon." he said.

She gave him a small nod in response.

"So? What is it?" she asked then.

He took a deep breath and licked his lips before replying.

"Well... I want to bring Wren back to town. You know, Melissa's man."

She furrowed an eyebrow.

"What? Why?" she asked then, confused.

"I don't want any revenge or stuff for what he did to me, you know I'm not that kind of person. I don't even want to report him to the police. I just want... I wanna try to...give Melissa's baby a father."

"And why would he come back?"

"Well... Of course I'm not gonna tell him it's Caleb Rivers who wants to meet him. I still haven't figured out how I'm gonna act for this, that's why I thought you could help me, someway."

Hanna raised her eyebrows as a waiter came to the pair and gave them their drinks. They both thanked him before Caleb cupped his glass of bourbon into his hands, leaning over the table, and continued talking.

"Look... I realized it would be wrong for me to stay that close to Melissa for all that time, both to me and to you. And you're probably right, that way I would grow fond of her baby, and... That would be a mistake, because Melissa would have a way to keep me stuck to her, and I can't let it happen. I'm not gonna let her use her baby. And I have to admit it that she would do that without a problem. But, on the other hand... I'm worried about that baby. I can't father her, I'm sorry but I can't, but... Maybe I could just bring her real dad back to her. I lost both my parents when I was a teenager, so I know that no one deserves to grow up without even just one of their parents. I want to do something for her future, or at least try to. For the baby, not for Melissa."

Hanna listened to him, silently. She took a sip of her soda, and when she was done, she put the glass back down on the table and finally crossed his gaze again.

" _'Her'_? Is it a girl?" she asked quietly.

He nodded slowly, taking a sip of his bourbon too.

"Yeah." he murmured, putting the glass back down.

"Well, but... He didn't want the baby, right? Why would he have a change of heart now?"

"Honestly, I don't know. But maybe seeing Melissa again, looking at the prints of her ultrasounds... Who knows. Look, it's not like I'm trying to get rid of Melissa and give her to him like she's a package, so that I can release myself from all of this, I... I just want to try to reunite what could be a family. The family _I_ haven't built yet."

"Caleb, you're trying to put together the broken pieces of a love which was born right behind your back..." Hanna commented, leaning back in her seat.

"There's a baby in the middle of this, Hanna. I don't care a shit if Wren and Melissa are gonna get back together or not, I just want the baby to be able to count on both her parents. I'm doing this for her. She doesn't have any fault if her parents are a douche and a bitch." he shrugged.

A small smile escaped from her lips, as she shook her head.

"Your heart is just too big." she added then.

"Yeah... Maybe too big that my own feelings get lost in it and then stupidly neglected by myself." he replied sadly.

Hanna sighed and finished her soda in one long sip, ignoring his comment.

"I really don't know how I could help you, though. I mean, you don't even know where the man is right now." she shrugged then.

"I have already hired a private investigator. Melissa said she was in Brasil with him before he ran away with all the money, so... Well, at least we have somewhere to start from. It's only a matter of time before my investigator finds him, trust me."

"I still don't get how I could be useful."

"Well... Of course I won't be able to contact him when we find him. He knows me, and there's no way he would get his ass back here to meet me, the man he stole money and woman from."

"So what, I'm gonna be your... _lure_?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

He chuckled slightly.

"Well, if you want to see it like that... However, we still need to find out more about Wren before anything." he shrugged then.

Hanna sighed.

"Why are you asking for _my_ help?" she asked then.

He pursed his lips, looking down at his glass for a moment before looking back at her and answering her question.

"Well... First of all, I don't have many people whom I can ask for help. And then... I thought it would be nice to do this together... You and I. For the baby, of course. Plus, this way you know what my intentions actually are. Anyway... You don't have to do anything of this if you don't want to. I know you're mad at me, but... But I want you to know that if Melissa is where she is, it's not because I love her or anything like that. I love _you_ , Hanna, okay?" he said then, reaching out for her hand over the table.

Hanna put her hand back on her lap as soon as he touched it.

"I... I don't know, I'm gonna think about it." she muttered, getting up from her barstool.

"Wait."

Hanna stopped and turned back to him.

"I'm so sorry for...everything." he murmured.

"I know." she nodded, and she knew he meant it.

"I'm gonna bring Charlie to your place tomorrow after work, if that's okay to you." he said then.

"Sure. Uh... Thanks for the soda."

"Anytime. Thank _you_." he smiled softly.

"Bye."

"Bye. See you tomorrow."

And then she turned on her heels and left the bar. Caleb watched her and sighed, hoping things would get better as soon as possible.

* * *

 **A/N: Hey guys :) I know I'm awfully late but I've been studying these days, ugh :/ Anyway, here you go with the new chapter. How was it? I bet you weren't expecting so much Haleb after that huge fight of last chapter :P What do you think about Caleb's "plan"? Looks like you're gonna see Wren too in this story... ;) However, if it wasn't clear enough, Hanna is still way pissed at Caleb, she has all the right to, so it's not gonna be that simple for him to win her back. Also, you'll see more Melissa in the next chapter. I guess you're really happy about the news haha :P Anyway, as usual, I want to thank you all for all the reviews you always leave to every chapter. It really means a lot to me :) And I'm glad you enjoyed last chapter even if Haleb had that huge fight. So, that's it :) I'm trying to update both my stories sooner next time, I promise :P Don't forget to let me know what you think of this chapter, though ;) Thank you so much as always for all of your support! Love you guys! xx -Atramea.**


	20. Chapter 20

The same night, Caleb came back home right after talking with Hanna at the bar. He found the nurse there, thanked her and sent her away, then he went to check on Melissa.

"Hi." he said simply, leaning by the doorframe of the guestroom.

"Hi... You're a little late." she replies from the bed.

Caleb shrugged.

"I went to drink something at the bar after work." he added then.

"With your girlfriend?"

He raised his eyebrows at that.

"Are you okay? You need something?" he asked in reply.

"Is she okay with all of this? I mean, I'm living with you..." she teased.

He chuckled and shook his head in disbelief.

"I'd like to remind you that you're here just because I want to help you." he replied then, firmly.

"And she believes you? She understands your point of view?"

Caleb rolled his eyes.

"I'm going to have dinner." he grunted then, exiting the room.

He was really trying to have a civilized relationship with that woman, but it was clear that wasn't possible. She never missed a chance to tease him.

* * *

Next day, at work, Caleb saw Hanna entering the studio, and he immediately went to his door to stop her before she arrived to her office.

"Hey." he smiled.

Hanna sighed and turned around, nodding at him.

"Hey." she replied.

"Uhm... Are we still okay about Charlie? After work I'm going to take him at my place and I'll bring him to yours, right?"

"Right."

"Thanks again for doing this."

Hanna nodded and was about to turn back around to make her way to the office but Caleb grabbed her wrist. She turned to him again as he left his light grasp from her.

"Sorry, I just wanted to know if you've thought about what we discussed last night." he continued, shrugging.

Hanna sighed once again.

"Look, Caleb... Right now there's basically nothing I can do to help you. When there is, well, we'll see what I want to do." she replied then.

"Well... I guess that's better than a 'no'." he grinned.

She bit her lip and raised her eyebrows before saying something else.

"I'm talking about the Wren thing, not about...us."

He pursed his lips.

"And... What about _us_?" he whispered.

Hanna looked down at that. A coworker passed the pair and Caleb smiled awkwardly at her, even though he had a feeling everyone in here knew that he and Hanna had something going on by now.

"I was just wondering something after last night... What if your plan doesn't work? In that case, Melissa would stay at your place until her childbirth, right?" Hanna asked him.

At that, it was Caleb the one who looked down. Hanna raised her eyebrows. She got her answer.

"Of course. Well, I'd better start working now." she concluded before turning on her heels and finally reaching her office.

Sighing, Caleb just watched her leave.

* * *

When work was over and Caleb walked to Hanna's office, he didn't find her here. She had already gone home. He felt sad thinking back to when she used to wait for him there so that then they could go to his place together. Everything had changed so quickly, but he couldn't blame anyone but himself for that.

He went to his place just to take Charlie, asking Lucy to stay with Melissa for a little longer, then he drove with his dog till Hanna's place. He wondered if her mom was home and what he would tell her in that case about the dog he was dropping off there before knocking lightly on the door with Charlie at his leash. Hanna opened the door.

"Hey." Caleb murmured, smiling slightly.

"Hi." Hanna mumbled before bending down to stroke Charlie's fur.

"Is your mom home?" he asked then.

"No, she went out for dinner." she replied, standing back up.

"Okay."

He was hoping for her to invite him inside, but she didn't seem to be inclined to.

"So... What are you gonna tell her about Charlie?" he asked then, trying to make a little bit of conversation.

She shrugged.

"I'm gonna tell her he's one of my friends' dog, that this friend has left for their summer vacations and I offered myself to look after him for a while, I guess." she added.

He nodded.

"My mom likes animals, we just don't have much space for any of them, that's why we don't have one. But I know Charlie can stay inside for a while before feeling the need of a walk, so... It's gonna be fine." she continued.

"I'm sure it is. Thank you." he smiled at her.

"It's okay."

Then, Caleb went to his knees and practically hugged his dog, patting his back lightly.

"Be a good dog, buddy. You're a guest in here, don't forget that." he whispered.

He kissed the top of Charlie's head before standing back up and handing Hanna the leash, shoving his hands in the pockets of his jeans after doing that. Hanna pursed her lips, staring at him.

"What?" he asked quietly.

"You don't want to do this, Caleb. You don't want to leave Charlie here, even if it's just temporary."

He sighed, looking down at his dog and giving him a small smile.

"Yeah... You're right. We've spent every single day together since I took him with me, so... But, to be honest, there are a lot of things I'm doing at the moment that I actually don't want to." he said, looking back into her eyes.

"Then why are you doing them?"

He shrugged.

"I always try to do the best thing for everyone, not only for myself." he added then.

Hanna sighed, still not sure how to feel about his extreme sense of duty.

"Look, Hanna... I know I already told you, but... I'm really sorry. I didn't want us to...well, to come to this point. I didn't want us to be affected by Melissa's return, believe me. But... I thought about everything, and I realized that you have all the right to act this way toward me. I can't turn my back on her, though, especially now. But... I miss you. I really do." he continued.

She bit her lip and looked down for a moment.

"Come in." she murmured then, making him some room.

Caleb smiled at her.

"Really?" he asked, surprised.

"Two glasses of wine won't kill anyone." was her reply.

He smiled again and got in the house as she closed the door behind their backs. Charlie lied down on his favorite carpet, then Hanna invited Caleb to take a seat on her couch as she went to the kitchen to pour two glasses of wine. When she returned and handed him his glass, he smiled.

"This reminds me a lot of the first time we drank wine together." he commented, accepting the glass from her.

"Yeah, well... That was pretty much how everything started." she replied before taking a small sip from her glass.

He did the same before a thought crossed his mind, analyzing the words she had just said. He swallowed before looking at her, a little worried.

"So you want this to be the way everything ends too?" he asked.

Hanna placed her half-filled glass on her coffee table before looking back at him.

"I wouldn't want it to end." she replied firmly.

" _'Wouldn't'_?"

"The way I see it, you're the one who's ending it with your... _choices_."

He sighed and placed his glass on the coffee table as well.

"Hanna, that's not what I want, at all. And that's not what you want either. Again, I miss you, and if there's something I can do to fix this, I'm gonna do that. Just don't ask me to kick Melissa out, please. I'm honest when I say that if she's there it's just because I want to protect her baby and try to bring her father back. But I don't want to give up on you, okay? I _won't_ give up on you. I had never had something like what the two of us have in a very long time and I can't just let it go now. I can't." he told her sincerely.

She sighed and leaned back in her couch, rubbing her forehead tiredly.

"So... What do these glasses of wine mean?" he asked.

"I don't know, actually." she murmured.

He sighed deeply, rubbing the back of his neck.

"You shouldn't be home to look after Melissa, though?" Hanna asked suddenly after some seconds of silence.

"I hired a nurse to stay home with her when I'm at the studio for these last days I have to work, and tonight I just asked her to stay for a little while longer." he explained calmly.

Another quite-long deep silence fell after that, before Caleb decided to break it.

"What about you? No girls night with Aria, Spencer and Emily?"

"No, it's Tuesday, we don't go out on school nights. Plus Spencer is probably studying right now, she has an exam tomorrow."

"She cares a lot about college, huh?"

"Yeah, definitely. I'm sure she'll be the first of us to graduate next year."

"Oh, c'mon, it could be also you." he smiled slightly.

Hanna had to look away from his smile soon, spotting Charlie and immediately popping out a question to break the awkwardness.

"Why did you call him Charlie, by the way? I've always wondered that."

"Oh, well... Do you know that TV series, _Lost_? I was totally obsessed by that. And my favorite character was Charlie Pace. That's it." he smiled, shrugging slightly.

"A drugs addicted? Seriously?" she raised her eyebrows.

He chuckled.

"Charlie fights with his addiction, and he eventually becomes a good person." he protested lightly.

"Yeah, well... He dies, eventually."

"Not because of drugs, though. He dies for his people. Besides, everyone dies in that show."

"Yeah, but he dies after just three seasons."

Caleb narrowed his eyes.

"Why the hell you never told me you watched _Lost_?" he asked then.

"You never mentioned that you liked it, that's why."

He bit his lip, quickly taking a sip of his glass of wine before smiling over at her.

"Sounds like we still have to find out a lot about each other." he murmured.

She shrugged, taking her glass and finishing her wine. He took a deep breath before saying something else.

"Do you think we could...uh...like, start over?"

She glanced up at him.

"I mean, besides our little secret mission to bring that douche of Wren Kingston's ass back in town, you think we could...I don't know, _talk_ sometimes? Yeah, I mean, in three days we'll stop working at the studio, so... I'm afraid that then I won't see you besides for the Wren thing, also saying that you're gonna accept to help me with that. I just... I know that neither you nor I are ready to stop this. On the other hand, I also know I messed things up lately. You know, I remember when we went to the lake with Charlie on a Saturday, and you told me I was like the perfect man. Well, I'm not perfect, at all. And I guess you noticed it by now. I make mistakes like anyone else in this world, but I've always fought for what I want. And I do want you, Hanna. I really want to make it up to you. So... Since you don't know what the meaning of these glasses of wine is either, well... Maybe it's the kind of 'start over' meaning. I don't know... Could it be?" he continued.

Hanna looked down, tapping the tip of her fingernails against her empty glass.

"Was my acting so unforgivable that I don't even deserve a second chance?" he asked again, trying to force at least a few words out of her mouth.

He had realized he had gone wrong those last days, and that was the proof. She had to recognize that.

She sighed deeply, roaming a hand through her hair. He watched every single one of her gestures, biting his lip trying to figure out what was running through her mind at the moment.

"I just... I can't deal with Melissa with you 24-7." she finally muttered, avoiding to make eye-contact with him.

"Is that all that stops you from giving another try?"

She sighed again, rubbing her forehead.

"You know what, I'm not in the mood of this kind of serious talks right now." she mumbled, leaning back in her couch.

He smiled slightly.

"Okay, no problem. I'll treat you to something to drink tomorrow night too, so you can tell me whatever you want. I won't say a single word, I promise." he said then.

"Do you realize it would practically already mean that we're gonna start over, right?" she glanced at him.

He grinned and shrugged.

"You tell me... Your choice. You can not come." he added.

She rolled her eyes, shaking her head.

"Alright. I should probably go now." he said then, getting up from the couch.

She didn't reply, she just got up with him.

"Uhm... You don't have to spend money on dog food, Charlie eats whatever leftover you have, so don't spoil him too much." he told her, looking over at his dog.

"Okay."

"Good. So... See you tomorrow?"

Hanna gave him a bad look, so he smiled innocently.

"At work." he punctualized.

"Sure." she mumbled as she walked him to the door.

Caleb gave Charlie one last pat on his back before turning to Hanna, quickly kissing her cheek before she even had time to realize.

"Goodnight. And thanks for everything." he whispered.

She was too shocked to say anything, so she just watched him leave before closing the front door, leaning her forehead on the wood and closing her eyes. Then, she turned around and saw Charlie apparently asleep on the carpet.

"You know, buddy... Your daddy is driving me crazy." she muttered.

* * *

Later that night, when Caleb had finished dinner, he stopped by Melissa's room to see if she was okay.

"Hi." he said, walking into the room.

"Hi. You went to the bar tonight too? I heard you came back but then you left again..."

He shrugged.

"Something like that. Anyway, I took my dog somewhere else, so... You don't have to worry about him." he told her then.

"Did you abandon him?"

"Of course not. I would never do that." he told her seriously.

Melissa looked confused, but she didn't really care about Charlie so she just shook it off.

"Are you going to bed?" she asked him.

"Yeah. It's been a long day."

"When are you gonna be done with work, though? Don't get me wrong, Lucy is nice, but... Well, having you here would be a lot better."

He furrowed his eyebrows and crossed his arms over his chest, not sure about what she meant by that.

"Friday is gonna be the last day, then I'm closing the studio for a few weeks." he replied.

"Good." she commented.

"Well, then... Goodnight."

"Night."

And with that, Caleb was walking out of the room when suddenly Melissa moaned in pain. He immediately turned around and rushed over to the bed.

"Hey, hey, hey... What is it? What's wrong?" he asked concerned, kneeling down next to her side.

But the pain expression on Melissa's face suddenly became a smile, a wide one. Calen blinked at her, confused.

"She kicked me." she explained then, laughing a little.

He smiled as well.

"Ouch! She did it again!" she muttered.

Then, she grabbed Caleb's hand and placed it firmly against her belly.

"Can you feel it?" she asked, grinning widely.

Before he could say anything, he clearly felt the baby kicking underneath his touch.

"Oh, God..." he mumbled, surprised by the feeling.

"I know, right?"

He smiled feeling another kick.

"That's so... _weird_." he stated then.

"Yeah, tell me about it." she giggled.

But then, the baby stopped her kicking moment and the only thing Caleb knew was that he had his hand against Melissa's belly and her hand was on top of his. They were really close, maybe _too_ close. He looked up slowly, and she was looking at him.

It only took a moment for her to lean in and press her lips against his.

* * *

 **A/N: I know, after this update you have a lot of reasons to want to kill me, because I'm awfully late, because I basically disappeared and most of all because of the way this chapter ended, but please don't hate me :P About the ending of the chapter, just remember that I didn't write how Caleb reacted, so... ;) About my late, well, this is my last year of college if everything goes as planned —and let's hope it does!— so I'm really having an hard time to find time to write now that summer is over, 'cause my days are full and when I get home in the evening I'm very tired and stressed and everything, so... Just to be clear, I'm NOT going to stop writing any of my stories, you have my word :) You just have to be a little patient because I don't know when I can manage to update :/ So, I'm sorry if you had to wait so long for this chapter :( But here it is now, right? Did you enjoyed it? Hanna is kind of softening with Caleb, and he's trying his best to win her back. But maybe Melissa is trying to step in between them now... What's gonna happen? What do you guys think? Also, I wanted to pay homage to "Lost", which is basically the best TV series ever to me, and Charlie actually was one of my faves characters :D So now you even got to know why Caleb called his dog the way he called him, and of course it has nothing to do with -A :P So, as usual thank you for every review/follow/favorite and PM, I'm really glad you're still enjoying the fic despite the wait between updates, it means a lot to me :) If someone is wondering when Haleb teams up to get Wren back in town, well, that will happen soon ;) And Ashley will be back in the next chapter ;) So, that's all for now. I hope you enjoyed the chapter and are not too mad for the way it ended :P Once again, thank you for your support! Can we get to 300 reviews with this update? :) Let's see! Have a nice day everyone, love you! xx -Atramea.**


	21. Chapter 21

Hanna was tidying the living room and Charlie was sleeping on the carpet when Ashley came home.

"Han, I'm—" she began, but she abruptly stopped when she saw a dog sleeping on her favorite carpet.

"Mom?" Hanna called from the living room, walking to the door.

"What the hell, Hanna?" Ashley asked, nodding toward Charlie.

Hanna took a deep breath before trying to explain.

"Yeah, I know, I should have told you. This is Charlie... Mona's dog. She's one of my friends from college, do you remember her? Well, she left for her vacations and she asked me to look after her dog for the time she's away. He's adorable, mom, don't worry."

"Hanna, we can't take care of a dog! I mean, what does he eat? Where will he sleep? We never had a dog, and our house is not even suitable for a dog, I guess."

"It's just for a few weeks, mom. Plus Mona told me he eats leftovers as well. And I think you already have an answer for where he's gonna sleep. It's not a big deal, mom. He'll be fine." Hanna shrugged.

Ashley raised an eyebrow, looking from Charlie and then back to her daughter.

"Hanna, whose this dog?" she asked then.

Hanna froze.

"It's Mona's, I told you." she murmured then.

"I know you told me, but now I want the truth."

Hanna sighed, nervously scratching the back of her neck.

"Okay, mom, look... It doesn't matter whose this dog. It's just a dog and I need to look after him for a few weeks...I think. But I'll take care of him, you won't have to worry about anything." she replied then, praying her mom wouldn't want to know more.

Ashley opened her mouth to reply but then Hanna's phone started ringing. She reached out for the pocket of her jeans and grabbed it.

It was Caleb.

"I need to take this. Sorry." she blurted out then, walking away to pick up.

Ashley sighed but didn't stop her.

"Hello?" Hanna picked up.

"Hey... Sorry to bother you, but... Do you think you can come over like...now?"

"What?"

"Please, Hanna. I really need to talk to you."

"Well, I'm not coming over there knowing who's there with you."

"That's exactly what I need to talk you about. Please, Han."

Hanna sighed.

"My mom just got back home and she also doesn't believe that Charlie is one of my friends' dog. I really can't deal with another third degree when I come back, I'm sorry." she said then.

"Look... I'm sorry if I'm causing you all of this trouble, but... Please, just come over here. I really need to talk to you."

"Can't it wait until tomorrow? You already asked me to go out with you after work, if I remember correctly..."

"It can't wait. I wouldn't have called otherwise."

Hanna sighed and bit her lip, thinking about what she wanted to do.

"Alright. I'll be there as soon as I can." she finally muttered.

"Thank you. See you later."

And then, she hung up, confused.

* * *

Caleb jumped off the couch as soon as the doorbell rang. He walked to the front door and opened it, seeing Hanna standing there.

"Hey. Thanks for coming." he told her, making her room to come inside.

She just gave him a brief nod, walking inside as he closed the door. He invited her to take a seat and he sat next to her.

"Do you want some wine?" he asked softly.

"Caleb, just tell me what you need to. I didn't come here to drink wine and chill." she snapped, feeling uncomfortable just at the thought of Melissa being somewhere in that same house.

He sighed and wiped his hands against his thighs before start talking.

"Okay, well... You were right about everything. I can't believe I've been so naive these last days. I should have just remembered what she did to me, I... I shouldn't have supported her like I did and I've always done."

Hanna raised her eyebrows.

"Well, congratulations. You finally got it." she just said.

There was an awkward silence after that, which he suddenly broke.

"She kissed me."

Hanna froze. Caleb took a deep breath before continuing.

"I pulled away immediately, though. She wanted me to feel her baby kicking, so I approached her, and then... She made her move. But you know what surprised me? I honestly thought I would feel something kissing her. But I... I just felt bad then. Really bad. Nothing else. It was like that made me realize how wrong the choices I made lately are, all in once, and... I thought about you, realizing how wrong I've been acting these days. That's why I called you, right away."

She stayed silent.

"What are you...thinking about?" he asked then.

"I don't know. I'm confused... I would have never imagined that my life would become sort of a soap opera..." she muttered.

"Listen, Hanna... I still think that it would be a good thing to bring Wren back in town, obviously for the baby. But... I don't want to live with Melissa anymore. But I can't kick her out now given her condition, so I'm gonna ask Lucy to be here 24-7. I will pay whatever she will ask me. And if she can't, I'm gonna figure something out, but... I'm not living here until the woman who's currently upstairs is stuck in the bed of my guestroom. I know it was my idea to bring her here, but I made a mistake. She's taking advantage of the situation when I wanted to believe she wasn't going to. She wasted her chance. So I... I'm just going to live in my boat. And... I know that this is probably not what a _good man_ would do, leaving a pregnant woman here alone when he was the one to tell her she could stay with him, but... I'm tired of being the _good man_. I don't want to be the _good man_ anymore, because it's just causing myself trouble. I just made a mistake telling Melissa she could stay, a huge one, but now I finally understood. But maybe it's too late, because that mistake made me lost you, and... I will never forgive myself for that."

Hanna blinked at him.

"I wanted to tell you about the kiss, so I did. I don't want any more lies or secrets between us. I'm waiting for Lucy to come, and... If she's willing to do what I'll tell her, I'm gonna move to my boat immediately. If not, I'll figure something out in the morning. Either way, if you want to come with me, I swear I'll close the studio for vacations earlier, and then we could even leave the country, immediately, for how long you want. We can even stop by your house first to tell your mom the whole truth, and if she's not okay with our relationship, I'm willing to run away with you. After all, you're adult, it's not like I would break the rule. Clearly, if she's okay it'd be better, anyway... I'm ready to drop everything for you. What I have right now is not what I want. What I really want is you, everything else can screw itself up, I don't care. That's it." he continued.

Hanna sighed deeply, lowering her gaze.

"I don't know what to think anymore..." she muttered then.

"I-I get it, absolutely. I recognize I've been changing my mind way too often lately, so... I understand you."

Once again, a deep silence fell between the two.

"Are you...mad about the kiss?" Caleb asked then, biting his lip.

"No. I was sure she would try to do that, so I was prepared, I guess. Plus, it's not like I can get mad. We're...done, after all."

"Are you sure we are?"

She sighed again, getting up from the couch. He got up as well, stopping her from leaving.

"Look... I know I've acted like an idiot these last days and I've let you down, and I feel awful about that, but now I finally made up my mind. Like I said earlier though, I'm not expecting you to do anything, just... I'll be in my boat, probably starting from tonight. It's at the dock. I'll be waiting for you, if you'll ever want even just to talk to me. Take your time, okay? Maybe it's not too late, just... I'll be there." he told her sincerely.

She nodded.

"Good." he whispered.

Then, he raised a hand to move a lock of her hair off her face but she took a step back before he could touch her. He sighed and retired his hand, shoving both of them into his pockets.

"Bye." Hanna murmured before exiting his house, as he watched her.

He sighed deeply, cursing himself. He knew how stupid he had been to make things go that way, because he couldn't blame anyone but himself for his current situation. He had wanted to be good, but he had ended up only being stupid.

But he wanted to believe that there still was a chance for him and Hanna, maybe it was small, but he was sure there was.

* * *

Hanna got back home to find her mom sitting on the couch, watching a movie, with Charlie lying at her feet. She instinctively smiled at that sight, before approaching the pair.

"I told you he was an angel." she said then, bending down to stroke the dog's fur.

Charlie began to move his tail excitedly, as Hanna giggled.

"He seems to know you." Ashley commented.

Hanna sat next to her mom and shrugged.

"I saw him a couple of times. Mona brought it to the campus. I guess he remembers me from then." she lied.

Ashley sighed.

"Hanna, what's going on with you?" she asked then, turning the volume of the TV down.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that I know you. In the last month I saw you really happy, and I think I understood it was because of this new guy you met. But these last days you've been acting weird, and you sure don't look so happy as I saw you before... I guess that's because of that guy as well. And, to be honest, this dog thing doesn't really convince me either. So... Do you want to talk about...everything, maybe?"

Hanna sighed deeply, rubbing her temples. Maybe talking could make her feel better, she thought. So, she finally turned to her mom and tried to say something.

"After what happened with Sean, I didn't think I was gonna be able to fall in love again. He hurt me so much, and I thought I couldn't trust any man in this whole world anymore. But then I met someone who understood me. In every single way. You know, he has a story similar to mine, and... It was like we had found each other. It was like we were meant to be. He... He's sweet, caring, and he's probably the kindest man I've ever met. He made me feel so good, mom. It was like I was living a dream, I... I couldn't believe I had been so lucky to have such a person in my life, especially after being cheated on."

"What happened then?"

Hanna pursed her lips and took another deep breath before going on with the story.

"Well... A person from his past came back. _The person of his past_ , actually. He had been so in love with her before she cheated on him. So she suddenly came back, and... Well, at first he kept it from me, anyway he had already rejected her, but then... Let's say that she took advantage of a series of situations to picture herself like a victim, and since he's a man too good, he just... He wanted to help her, but he definitely crossed a line. He kind of...took me for granted by helping her, and... I couldn't stand it."

"You guys broke up?"

"Sort of, I think. We had this huge fight, I told him to choose between her and me, but... He didn't let her go. He kept telling me he loved me and not her, but for some reason he didn't let her go. And that was the breaking point. I left his place slamming the door shut, yelling at him that he had only been an illusion. That's pretty much what happened."

"Have you been with him tonight?"

"Yeah. He wanted to talk, and I didn't manage to reject him."

"So?"

"He told me he made a huge mistake by doing what he had done. He apologized and he kinda ended things with the other person for me, at least that's what he said. Apparently she kissed him, and that made him realize his mistakes, her bad purposes and the fact that he actually wants me and only me. But, honestly, I'm afraid to give another try, mom. I don't wanna get hurt again."

Ashley sighed but gave her daughter a small smile.

"This dog is his, isn't he?" she asked then.

"Yeah. It'd be complicated to explain you why Charlie ended up being here now, but... It's his dog. That's why he knows me, right, buddy?" Hanna replied, stroking Charlie's fur again.

Ashley stayed silent for a minute before asking something else.

"What do you think you're going to do with your guy?"

Hanna sighed, leaning back against the couch cushions.

"Honestly, I don't know." she muttered.

"Well... Let me just say that I think you're still totally into him."

"Of course I am, but... I don't know what to do. I mean, why do I always have to share someone with another girl? Is that my destiny?"

Ashley couldn't help but laugh a little.

"C'mon, sweetheart. He said he chose you now, right? Well, make him wait. See if he's really willing to wait for you. And if he is, well, maybe he was honest. And maybe deserves a second chance. If not, I guess you'll know what you have to do then. Anyways, it's all up to you. I'm just giving you some advice. I'm sure this break, if it's just a break, is gonna be useful for you both." she said then.

Hanna smiled at her mom's words. She sure had a point, and she made things look easier by the way she talked.

"Sounds cool. Thanks, mom. I think you're totally right." she replied then, still smiling.

"Yeah, well... Everyone makes mistakes. But not everyone recognizes them. Your guy apparently did, so... Let's hope that's not just apparently. If he really loves you like he said, though, I'm sure he will wait for you, no matter what."

"I hope so."

"You love him too, don't you?"

Hanna blushed a little.

"Uh... Mom, I appreciate everything, but... I'd rather not going there." she mumbled then.

Ashley laughed again.

"Okay, whatever, missy. I recognize that's probably too private for me to know. Anyway... I'm going to bed, I'm pretty tired. I also ate too much at the restaurant." she announced then, standing up from the couch.

Hanna did the same, chuckling.

"Yeah, I bet you did. Goodnight, mom. Thanks for the talk." she said then, smiling at her.

"Anytime. Men are pretty weird, you just have to be a little patient with them all."

" _Very_ patient, I'd say."

"Well, that's probably more correct. Night." Ashley laughed.

"Night."

* * *

When Hanna went to bed, she kept thinking about what her mom had told her. And of course, she couldn't help but think of Caleb. She wondered if he had really moved to his boat, if he had all he needed there and everything else.

She stared at the mobile on her nightstand, considering to give him a call, just to know if he was okay. She was still mad as hell at him, but she couldn't help but worry for him.

Suddenly, she extended an arm and grabbed her mobile, quickly going to the call list and touching Caleb's name with her thumb. Then she put the mobile over her ear, already regretting her choice, but she was already calling him, so the mess was done. And when his warm voice picked up, she felt a shiver run down her spine.

"Hanna?"

She stayed silent for a moment, not knowing what to do. She could pretend the call had been accidental, that she hadn't actually meant to call him and stuff, but she knew he wouldn't believe it.

"Hanna?" he called again from the other side of the phone.

"I... Uhm... Caleb?" she stuttered.

"Hey, is everything okay?"

"Yeah... Uhm... Yeah, I'm okay. I just... I just called you to know if you're still home."

"Yes, I am. I'm packing, actually. Are you...coming over or something?"

"No, no, I... Just... Are you really moving to your boat?"

"Yeah. Lucy said she's fine to be here with Melissa, at least until the end of this week, so... There's no need for me to stay here anymore, and I really don't want to. I was serious, Hanna... I'm moving out."

"But do you have everything you need on the boat? I mean, it's still a boat..."

She heard a light chuckle coming from his mouth.

"Pretty much. Not everything, sure, but that's the reason I'm currently packing something. Don't worry, I'm a big boy." he added then.

"I'm... I'm sorry."

"What? Why would you be sorry? You've nothing to be sorry about, Hanna, okay?"

"I didn't want you to move out from your house, I—"

He cut her off.

"You didn't ask me, Han. It's my choice. I made I mess all by myself, I'm just trying to sort it out now. And I'm not becoming a tramp, it's just a temporary thing. This house is still mine and it will always be. But, hey, my boat is a really nice place to stay, trust me. I'll be fine, and please don't feel guilty for any of this. I'm the only one who has to apologize here. Alright? I'm happy I'm doing this, actually, so... Don't worry."

"Okay." she whispered.

"Okay." he repeated, smiling a little.

"I-I don't even know why I called, I probably shouldn't have, I—"

He cut her off again.

"No, no, I'm glad you did. I missed seeing your name on my phone screen... And you know I'm always happy to hear your voice, even though I saw you not so long ago."

Hanna stayed silent, not knowing how to reply, then Caleb continued.

"So... Did you get home? Everything okay?"

"Yeah, everything okay."

"What about Charlie?"

"He's downstairs, and the last time I checked he was sound asleep on the carpet."

"Good. So... Are you in bed?"

"Yeah."

"Okay, I'll let you sleep then."

"Okay."

"Well... Goodnight. Thanks again for calling. I'll see you tomorrow. Sleep tight."

"Night." she mumbled before closing the call.

She sighed and put her mobile back on the nightstand before turning around in the sheets to try to get some sleep.

* * *

 **A/N: Hi guys ;) I'm so sorry for taking so long to update but trust me, I'm doing what I can to keep my stories up. Anyways, on to this new chapter... So, I know I didn't start from where I left off last time but that was on purpose. I want you all to find out the continuation of that scene just like Hanna heard from Caleb :P So, apparently Melissa kissing him made him realize how bad his choices were... FINALLY! He wants to prove Hanna that he's now aware of his mistakes by distancing himself from Melissa, that's why he decided to move in his boat. I'm curious to know how you feel about his decision ;) And I really hope you enjoyed the mom-daughter talk between Hanna and Ashley :D Be aware that Hanna WILL tell Ashley that the guy is Caleb sooner or later, so be prepared for that ;) And last but not least, I also hope you appreciated Hanna calling Caleb after their talk :) So... Are you happy Caleb finally understood that Melissa doesn't deserve all of his kindness? What will happen next? Will Hanna forgive him? Who knows :P Guest, I really don't know how many chapters are left, but I don't think this is going to be too long. FrenchBenzo, I'm studying foreign languges :) So, everybody, let me know your thoughts about this chapter! I know Caleb was starting to drive you nuts, so... I hope you appreciated the fact that he came around, someway – finally. I apologize one last time for my late and I thank you all for your amazing support despite everything, that's why I really hope the story is not disappointing you :) Oh, by the way, everyone should seriously take a moment to appreciate the sweetness of Ashley's birthday message to Tyler and his reply, which was absolutely cute as well. Sorry, I had to mention that :') Love you all, have a nice day! xx -Atramea.**


	22. Chapter 22

Next day, at work, things were a little awkward. Hanna was starting to realize that she could hide neither from herself nor from Caleb that no matter how mad she was at him, she just melted like snow under the sun everytime that he smiled over at her. Plus, she had to be honest with herself; his gesture of leaving his own house had really impressed her. It was true that what he had done before, offering Melissa a way too generous help, had been a huge mistake toward her, but now he was really showing her that he was aware of his mistakes and wanted to make it up to her.

When he brought her coffee during their daily break, he also took a seat across her desk. Hanna raised her eyebrows when he did so.

"I hope you still want to come for a drink with me later. I have some stuff to discuss with you." he told her.

"Of course you do." she muttered, sighing.

"No, seriously... The private investigator I hired for Wren called me earlier this morning. He had some news, so... Well, I'm gonna tell you, so we can see if you can and of course _want_ to help me someway."

"He found him?" Hanna asked then, cupping the cup of coffee between her hands.

"Yeah, he did. Kingston hasn't even changed his name or anything. I could give him to the police right now, if I want to. But, luckily for him, I have other plans."

"What do you have in mind, exactly?"

"I'll tell you later. No spoilers." he grinned, winking at her.

Hanna rolled her eyes but she couldn't hold back a little smile. Then, she hid herself behind her cup of coffee, hoping it would help her not to make him notice her blush. When she placed it back down, though, he was still staring at her silent. Feeling underpressure, she managed to say something.

"Uhm... How was your night on the boat?"

"Oh, it was pretty nice. The noise of the ocean actually helps me to calm down and make some order in my mind."

"Right." she mumbled, not knowing what to say.

"However, it was nice to hear from you last night. I appreciated your concern, even though there was no need to get worried."

"I wasn't...worried, I just wanted to know if you had already left from your house and if everything was...okay." she stuttered.

"And that is not the same thing of being worried?" he grinned.

Hanna pursed her lips and looked down at the papers on her desk, nervously tapping her pen against the wood surface.

"I have some work to do, if you don't mind." she murmured, not looking up.

"Sure. Uhm... I'll see you later. Good work." he mumbled, getting up from the chair.

"Yeah, you too."

Once he got outside, she leaned back into her seat and threw her head back against the backrest, closing her eyes and sighing deeply.

* * *

Later, Hanna and Caleb were once again sitting at a table for two at the pub at the corner of the street. This time they both went for a soda.

"So, uh... I was thinking I could also take Charlie back now, since I'm back to live on my own..." he began as they waited for their drinks.

"No, no, don't worry. I mean, you don't need to. He doesn't bother us, my mom actually likes him now."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"Good. That's good. But I'm taking him back soon, just for the record." he smiled then.

"I'm not trying to steal your dog, relax."

"Oh, I'm not sure he would complain in that case. He has a good taste in girls." he grinned.

Hanna rolled her eyes as the bartender finally brought them their drinks. Caleb glanced deadly at him when he gave Hanna a smile along with a wink, and as soon as he noticed that, he quickly walked away. Hanna missed the whole thing, though.

"Tell me about Wren." she began then.

He nodded briefly before speaking.

"Well... Seems like he's not doing much over there. Of course, with all of that money it's not like he needs to do something. But my investigator found out that he has a weak point. He seems to really like bets. He's basically investing all the money he stole on that."

"So you... You want to bring him back here making him believe...a new casino is opening or something?" she raised an eyebrow.

He shrugged lightly before taking a sip from his glass.

"Something like that, yeah. Those things are a real addiction for some people. I'm sure he won't be able to say no." he said putting the glass back on the table.

"Let me guess... I'm the one who will reach out for him."

He shrugged, smiling.

"You don't need to. I can do this on my own, I'm not expecting anything from you, it's totally your choice. But... I'd be happy if you're gonna help me, clearly." he added then.

"So what, I just...call him saying 'Hi, you know, there's this new casino down here, would you like to play with us?' and then he comes?"

Caleb chuckled a little.

"Well... I don't know if it'd work like that. But he seems to be also a good player, a lucky one, so he's kind of known in Brasil, in that milieu. He won a lot, you know. So... Well, yeah. You could be the owner of the new casino, then we contact him and you tell him you know him because of his name, and that you'd like to have him playing in your place. But not by phone, at first. I was thinking more about an e-mail. My investigator found out that Wren is registered to an online forum for players, so I think we should start from there. Then, maybe, we'll also write a phone number in the e-mail, so he's probably the one who will contact us, in the end. I'm sure he's not gonna hesitate if it's about bets." he added then.

"If you say so..."

"Look, I would do this on my own, but he could recognize me when he hears my voice. If you don't want to, though—"

"It's okay. I'm gonna help you." she cut him off, shrugging slightly.

He smiled.

"Thank you." he murmured then.

Hanna just nodded.

"Uhm... So... How are things going?" he began again, to make some conversation.

She swallowed a little of her soda before replying.

"Good, I guess."

"I'm glad."

"What... What about you?"

"Oh, I'm fine. I told you, living on the boat is totally cool to me. You should totally come to check it out, by the way."

She raised an eyebrow at him. He bit his lip and continued.

"C'mon, I mean, just to take a look. We had other plans about the boat just a few days ago, I know, but I also know I'm not currently in the condition to ask you to go somewhere with me, so... I'm just asking you to see how I'm doing, so you're not gonna keep being worried about me."

She rolled her eyes as she leaned back into her seat.

"I told you, I wasn't worried." she muttered then, crossing her arms over her chest.

He took a quick look at the way her breasts went up because of the position of her arms, then he focused back on her eyes.

"C'mon. I won't do anything that could bother you, you have my word." he whispered, smiling.

She sighed, scratching her head.

"Why would I come to your boat?" she asked then.

"Hanna, look, I'm not asking you to marry me. I'd just like to show you the boat. So, if you'd like to come take a look too, well... We could go. You could stay as long as you want, even if it's just five minutes. That's it."

She pursed her lips and stayed silent for a moment before answering him.

"Okay, whatever... But just because I'm curious to see it."

He grinned before finishing his soda, then he lifted his glass toward her.

"Sure." he said then, grinning again.

* * *

Not much later, in separate cars, Hanna and Caleb got to the dock. He hopped out of his BMW first, then walked to her car to open the door of her car for her. They walked for about a minute before reaching Caleb's boat.

"Here." he said, pointing to his boat.

Hanna thought that it looked quite large and nice indeed.

"C'mon, let me show you inside." he continued, nodding toward the entry,

Hanna shook her head.

"N-No, look, it's fine. I'm kind of...claustrophobic." she stammered.

It wasn't true, of course. She just made up te first excuse came up to her mind because the truth was that she didn't trust herself alone with Caleb in somewhere private. And she was wondering why the hell she had accepted to come with him in the first place.

"Oh, I... I didn't know." he nodded, serious, even though he didn't understand why she hadn't mentioned it when they had talked about their trip on the boat.

"Anyway, it looks...nice."

"Yeah, it actually is. But, hey, at least come on the roof. There's a nice view." he smiled then.

Hanna realized she couldn't really say no at that point. She shrugged slightly as she followed Caleb to his boat.

Indeed, the view was amazing. The sunset at the horizon, with the ocean mirroring it, was truly wonderful. Hanna instinctively walked down the roof until she reached the bow, leaning in and placing her elbows on the railing as she took in the sight.

"So, how is it?" Caleb asked, walking to her.

"It's... Beautiful." Hanna sighed, still bewitched by the view.

He smiled as he postioned himself behind her.

"Just like you." he said softly.

Hanna rolled her eyes, even though she wasn't sure if he could see her or not.

"Corniest line ever." she muttered.

Caleb chuckled slightly as his arms went to either side of hers, holding the railing, and his chin rested on her shoulder from behind. Hanna held her breath at their closure, as she felt the wind caressing her skin. She couldn't move or anything, she was just standing there, with Caleb behind her, way too close to her. The tip of his nose traveled up her cheek, brushing over her skin, before going back down when his lips gently met her cheek, where he printed a sweet lingering kiss. Hanna closed her eyes at the feeling, still frozen on her spot.

"It may be corny, but that's what I think." he whispered in her ear then.

She released her breath only then, and she opened her eyes, still looking at the sunset. She felt really uncomfortable, not knowing what to say or do and insanely attracted by the man there with her. She awkwardly cleared her throat and turned around, avoiding Caleb's gaze.

"I-I have to go." she muttered as she left the boat.

Caleb instinctively started following her, but then he stopped. He had to be patient. He wasn't going to give up, but he had to wait for her to be ready again to trust him without pressing her.

* * *

Hanna came back home feeling very confused. There was this part of herself who wanted to take Caleb back into her life and forgive him right away because she missed him so much and felt this undeniable crazy attraction between them, but there was this other part of herself who was still hurt and needed some more time to think about everything. Anyway, he had been right: he hadn't done anything that had bothered her. That sweet kiss, even if only on the cheek, had felt anything but annoying to her.

Sighing, she closed the front door behind her back and walked down the hallway before climbing on the couch next to her mom, giving Charlie a light pat on his back on her way.

"Tiring day?" Ashley asked.

"Sort of." Hanna mumbled.

Ashley took a deep breath before straightening herself up on the couch, looking at her daughter. Hanna understood it had to be something serious from the way her mom was looking at her.

"W-What's going on, mom?" she asked then, furrowing an eyebrow.

Ashley sighed before replying.

"I was trying to brush Charlie's fur this afternoon, and... I noticed something on his tag. There was a name and an address engraved on the back of it. Hanna... Is this doctor Rivers' dog?"

Hanna froze. She had never noticed that detail and immediately wondered why Caleb hadn't warned her about it.

"I take it as a yes. So... The guy you've been talking about was doctor Rivers? You two were together?" Ashley asked again.

Hanna was like petrified. She didn't know what to tell her mom at that point, but she knew she had to try to say at least something. Maybe it was finally the moment of the truth. So she swallowed and took a deep breath before speaking up.

"I didn't want you to find out like this. I would've told you. Actually, Caleb and I wanted to tell you, together. I know what you're thinking mom, I know you're thinking that he's too older for me and everything but, believe me, that's never been a problem. We felt so good together, he taught me a lot of things and I found a truly amazing person, and... I fell for him. Now we're not in a really good place, Melissa came back, and she's pregnant, but not with Caleb's baby, and... Okay, you know, it's complicated, let's just say that then we had some problems and we kind of lost each other, but... I still feel something for him but I think it's nothing wrong, like I've always thought. I don't know if you want to reproach me telling me I can't feel something for my nine years older boss and shit, but be aware that I won't change my mind. I'm a big girl by now, I know what I'm doing with my life and, just for the record, I didn't choose to fall in love with a technically married man, older than me who also happens to be my boss, it just happened. And he fell for me too, mom. It happened. And... Yes, I slept with him. But I don't regret it or anything of all of this. So... That's it."

Ashley sighed deeply, closing her eyes and moving an hand all over her face.

"When he came over for dinner that night..." she began asking, but Hanna replied before she had time to complete the question.

"Yeah, we were together... Kind of."

Ashley pursed her lips, not saying a word.

"I, _we_ , were gonna tell you. Just... Caleb wanted to divorce first. But then, ever since his wife is back in town, things got messed up, and... Well, there wasn't so much to tell you then." Hanna continued.

Ashley sighed deeply once again.

"Okay, mom, you know what? I can't do this right now. I can't stay here and listen to your lecture. I just can't. I'm not twelve anymore." Hanna muttered then, getting up from the couch and walking to the front door.

"Hanna! Hanna, where are you going?" Ashley asked, but the only answer she received was a door slammed shut as her daughter made her way out.

* * *

 **A/N: So I said I would update this weekend in the worst case and here I am :P To be honest, I wanted to update on Thursday, but I had some problems with my internet connection and I eventually couldn't... Anyway, the new chapter is finally here :) So, you guys wanted Ashley to know and now she knows! Just to clarify, Hanna kind of didn't give her any time to react, so we still don't know how mama Marin exactly feels about all of this... But we'll find out soon ;) Then, seems like the Haleb teaming up is happening :D They finally know something about Wren, so they can start figure something out to bring him back to Melissa and try to make him come around. Then... Did you like their little moment on the boat? :P I hope so, just like I hope you enjoyed the rest of the chapter as well ;) Let me know as always! FrenchBenzo, I don't know what I want to do after my studies, but I really like translating so I hope it could involve that someway :) And, I don't know if you see it after leaving the review, probably you did, but it's always nice to remember how Tyler replied to Ashley's birthday wishes :P "You make me so happy babe. Thank you for so many amazing memories. So much love for you." :):) How cute are they? Like a guest said in a review... Let's hope they will wise up someday, haha :D – AND OMG HOW HOT WERE THEY DRESSED UP AS VAMPIRES? I CAN'T! Guest, maybe we will hear from Caleb what he and Melissa said to each other after she kissed him, probably in a few chapters... Who knows ;) Halebxxx, well, technically that time at Hanna's place was unprotected, but I'm really not planning a pregnancy in this story :) So, I noticed there are some new followers to this fanfic and I wanted to welcome them :) Also, thank you guys for each one of your reviews... As you know, I always read them all because I really care about your thoughts, so keep it up ;) Next chapter should be kind of a good one, so I'll try to update sooner :P Hope to read from you all, have a nice start of week everyone! – "I Won't Let" will be updated soon! – Love you! xx -Atramea.**


	23. Chapter 23

Caleb was sitting on the railing of the dock, smoking a cigarette. He was there, outside, staring at the dark ocean, lost into his own thoughts. Once his cigarette was over, he threw it to the ground and put it out with his shoe, blowing the last stream of smoke out of his mouth. He walked back to his boat, walking down the small stepladder to get in, leaving the entry open because the air was pretty warm. Sighing, he took some pasta from where he had placed it when he first moved into the boat, since he hadn't had dinner yet.

While he was pouring some water into the pot to cook, he heard footsteps behind him. He turned around immediately, alerted by the noise. Hanna was standing behind him, awkwardly holding the handle of her purse with both of her hands.

"Hey." he said, smiling shyly, not expecting to see her again so soon.

"Uh... Hi." Hanna replied, biting hard on her lower lip.

Caleb smiled again.

"I... I was making some pasta. Have you already eaten? Wanna join me?" he mumbled then.

He didn't know why, but he had a feeling that he always looked ridicolous while talking to her.

"No, thanks." she replied.

"Uh... Okay. Is...everything alright? Did something happen?"

"My mom knows." she blurted out, not beating around the bush.

Caleb was surprised.

"You told her?" he asked, blinking at her.

"Yeah. I just... I kinda had to. I couldn't hold it back anymore anyways."

He nodded slowly.

"And... What did she say?" he asked then.

She took a deep breath before answering.

"It doesn't really matter now. But she knows."

"Well, okay. I mean, I could've told her with you, but... It's fine."

Hanna nodded and lowered her gaze.

"Alright, so... Have a seat." he told her awkwardly, gesturing for the small couch he had in the boat.

She then took the few steps which parted her from the couch before sitting down.

"How about some wine?" he smiled softly at her.

She just nodded and waited for him to join her on the couch, carrying their two wine-filled glasses.

"I'm sorry if I showed up here like this." she murmured out of the blue.

"Don't ever apologize for showing up to me. It's always nice to see you." he shrugged, smiling.

She smiled awkwardly before taking a sip of wine from her glass.

"By the way... I'm sorry too for earlier. I didn't want to press you or anything. I'll wait for you, no matter how long it takes." he said then.

She looked at him for a long moment through her thick eyelashes, not saying a single word.

"So... You feel better now that your mom knows what happened?" he began again, clearing his throat.

"Yeah, definitely."

Caleb nodded before taking a sip of wine.

It was kind of awkward. Hanna didn't even know why she had come over, she just knew it was the first place —person, actually— that had come up to her mind. Despite how awkward it was, despite she didn't know where things between her and Caleb were exactly standing, despite she was still mad at him, there she was. She didn't go to one of her friends, she went to _him_. There was always something which brought her back to him, _always_. She didn't know what it was, but she knew there was.

"I... I don't want to come home tonight." she blurted out then.

Caleb lowered his glass to look directly at her.

"You can stay here, if you want. I'm just gonna sleep here on the couch." he immediately offered, not thinking about any secret agenda.

She sighed deeply, rubbing her forehead.

"Honestly, I don't know if that's a good idea, Caleb... I should have gone to Spencer or Aria or Em, I don't really know why I'm here." she muttered then, reasoning more with herself than with him, looking down.

Caleb sighed, placing his glass on the small table he had there before taking Hanna's glass from her and doing the same. He grabbed her hand and gently rubbed his thumb over her skin.

"Well... I guess there's a reason if you did, though." he whispered softly.

She didn't push him away. She looked at their joined hands and thought about how comfortable it felt. Maybe it wasn't _that_ awkward, after all.

"However... I'm glad you came here, just in case you were wondering." he added, smiling slightly.

She smiled back, looking back up at him.

"And I'm serious, you can stay here tonight. I promise I'm just gonna stay here on this couch without bothering you, you have my word. Just text your mom or something to make her know you're fine, though." he continued.

She chuckled and shook her head, as he kept rubbing circles on the back of her hand.

"You sure you don't want anything to eat? I also have some noddles and other stuff." he asked then.

"I'm fine, thanks. But you can eat, don't worry. I'm not gonna bother you either."

"I wish you did." he grinned.

She rolled her eyes slightly as he gently let go of her hand and got up to go back to the stoves. She missed his touch as soon as he pulled away his hand from hers, but she felt her mood lighten up as she watched him easily move around the boat and cook.

* * *

Eventually, Hanna ate some noodles which Caleb insisted to cook for her. After sharing a comfortable silent dinner, they took his laptop and found together the online forum of players which Wren was enrolled to, sending him a private message to tell him about the new casino and everything they had planned. He didn't reply soon so, after waiting half an hour, they just decided to watch a movie on the laptop. She fell asleep when the movie hadn't even reached its half, though, and Caleb noticed it when her head fell on his shoulder. He smiled at the feeling and waited a minute or so before waking her up.

"Han?" he whispered, gently shaking her.

She moaned before abruptly raising her head from his shoulder.

"What? Is it morning?" she mumbled.

He chuckled, shaking his head.

"No, but it's getting late and you seem pretty tired. How about you go to sleep?" he asked then.

"Oh... Yeah. Yeah, I should probably leave."

"No, I just meant that you should get in bed, there. Don't leave, there's no point." he replied, nodding toward his boat king-sized bed.

"It's fine, I can go to Emily's."

"This time of the night? Shut up, her mom would not be really happy to be woken up." he grinned.

Hanna sighed, still unsure.

"Look... If you need some comfortable clothes to sleep with, you can take one of my shirt. Use the bathroom to get changed and everything, and then it's done. I'll just be here." he continued.

"I... Uhm..." she stammered.

"Are you scared of me?"

"No. No, I'm not." she replied with decision.

"Well, then... My shirts are all in that chest of drawer. Choose whatever you want. The bathroom is right there, but it's not like there are others door in here, so..." he shrugged then, smiling and pointing his finger around his boat.

"Okay. Well... Thank you." she finally said.

"Don't even say that."

* * *

Hanna did what she was told to. While Caleb was typing something on his laptop, she picked one of his shirts from the drawer, then she stepped into the bathroom to get changed. When she was done she got out, noticing he was still there, probably focused on some work e-mail, still clothed and everything. She found it cute when she saw he was chewing hard on his lower lip, thing he usually did when he was focused on something important.

"Okay, then. I... I'll go to bed." she mumbled, awkwardly pulling his shirt down in order to cover her thighs the most she could.

At the sound of her voice, he immediately turned his head around and flashed her a smile.

"Sure. You can turn the lights down." he added.

"Are you sure? Don't you need them?"

"No, it's fine, don't worry. Goodnight."

"Alright... Night." she quickly replied, crossing the boat to reach his bed, finally getting under the blankets after shutting the lights off.

* * *

A minute passed, then two, then ten and then it was already half an hour that she was there, in bed, but she couldn't sleep. And it wasn't because Caleb was being loud with his keyboard or anything — actually, he was being absolutely quiet — it was just because _he was there_. And a part of herself someway wasn't fine to be there with him, into his bed, but having him so far from where she was. She needed contact with him, she needed to have his hands on her skin, she missed it so much and now she was so close to him... But yet so far.

She knew she shouldn't have accepted to spend the night there, because her feelings and desires were coming back to her all of a sudden, and she really didn't know how to hold them back anymore. She had held them back for way too long already.

But she had accepted to stay. And he had said he would like to be _bothered_ by her, right?

Hanna suddenly threw the blankets on the side, touching the floor with her bare feet, and got up from the bed. She took a few steps, walking past the couch. Caleb immediately raised his gaze from the screen of his laptop to her face, smiling slightly.

"Hey, need something?" he asked softly.

She took a deep breath, roaming a hand through her hair.

"I just... I can't sleep." she muttered then.

The only light of the whole boat was coming from his laptop, illuminating his face as he studied her silhouette, not exactly clothed.

"If you need some cold water, it's in the fridge." he said casually, not really knowing what to tell her.

"Don't you sleep?" Hanna asked, leaning against the counter.

"Just want to fix some work stuff first." he shrugged then.

She didn't say anything more, she just stared at him, and he started feeling kind of self-conscious under her eyes.

"Uhm... Is there something wrong? Are you worried about Wren?" he asked then.

"No." she shook her head slowly.

He stared back at her for a long moment before taking a decision. He lifted his laptop off his lap, placing it on the side of the couch and then stood up, slowly walking toward her. She didn't move of a single inch as he approached her. His eyes were narrowed and one of his eyebrows was slightly lifted, as he was trying to read her mind. And then, he was standing right in front of her, silent and still. He had promised he wouldn't do anything to bother or press her, so he wouldn't. He would just wait for her next move. She just looked up at him, though, her face framed in the dark.

"What is it, Hanna?" he asked then, in a whisper.

She couldn't help but smirk, and he could see a small sparkle of light in the darkness coming from her pearled teeth. Then, he felt her taking his hands in hers, catching him off guard. He looked deeply into her eyes as she slowly placed her head against his, making their foreheads touch. Then she slightly lowered her head, finally placing a soft kiss on his lips. It was delicate and quick, but when she pulled away she noticed his eyes were still closed, and she found it absolutely cute. She then let go of his hands, touching his arms before cupping his cheeks. He opened his eyes and linked his hands over her small back before Hanna kissed him again, this time longer, this time more passionately. He instinctively opened his mouth, but waited for her to feel totally comfortable into the kiss. When she did, her tongue easily entered his mouth. Caleb moaned slightly, tightening his grasp around her body and pushing her against him. Their tongues soon met, merging in one single thing. Hanna's hands then went down, haphazardly starting to undo the buttons of Caleb's shirt, so he felt allowed to grip the hem of her —his— shirt, encouraging her to pull away to take it off. She did, and when her shirt was off, he immediately searched for her mouth again, but she pulled away before their lips meet, wanting to finish her work on his shirt first. He watched her, absent-mindedly focusing on her cleavage, and waited for her to finish, then he threw his shirt away as well. They immediately reconnected their lips as he lifted her from the ground. Hanna looped her legs around his waist as he carried her to the bed, sustaining her with his hands under her thighs.

The walk to the bed was short, then Caleb finally lowered her on the mattress, smiling at the sight of her already messy hair and her red cheeks. She sat up and started working on his belt buckle, quickly unzipping his jeans and pulling them down. He kicked his shoes off and got out of his pants too, lowering his almost naked body on hers. Then he kissed her again, roaming his hands over her soft sides before moving his lips to her neck, where he gently started sucking. Hanna threw her head back into the pillow, closing a fist through Caleb's hair. He stopped at some point, proudly leaving a mark on her skin, then he licked down her body, lowering the left cup of her bra with his hand. He kissed her sweet spot, delicately grazing her hard nipple with his teeth, before moving his hand behind her body to unclasp her bra. She arched her back to allow him to do that, then she took it off for him and threw it away. Her hand didn't waste a second to reach his crotch, eagerly pulling his boxers down. He took a moment to remove them for good, lying back on her body the second later. He kissed her again, teasingly pushing his erection against her still-clad centre, as she moaned into his mouth. Then, he pulled away and extended an arm toward the bedside table, rummaging for a condom inside the drawer. He quickly ripped the foil and slid the condom over his cock before returning to kiss her. While kissing, he reached for her panties and lowered them, as Hanna kicked them off. He pulled away slightly, panting, before placing his forehead on top of hers. Her hands went to cup his face while his ones gripped her sides, then he finally slid into her.

Hanna gasped at the feeling, letting her arms fall on the mattress. He breathed out deeply and then connected their hands, interlacing their fingers. He held her hands tightly as he began thrusting, slowly and deeply. She searched for his mouth once again, wanting to be connected with him in many different ways at the same time. The kissing didn't last long though, because they both were in need of air. Soft sighs and moans quickly filled the whole boat, as Caleb felt the need of speeding up the pace. He buried his face into the pillow, right next to her head, starting to go quicker and deeper into her, making her shake and moan louder. At some point, he let go of her hands to grip her thighs, lifting them from the bed and placing her legs on either side of his waist, gaining a better angle as he kept pulling in and out. At that, she instinctively clenched her legs around him, letting him go even deeper, pushing on the back of his shoulders. He turned his head slightly to place some small wet kisses on the side of her neck once in a while, still thrusting deeply inside of her.

Hanna then made a move, encouraging him to roll over. He obeyed, lying with his back on the mattress and taking her with him, so that she was now on top. She lifted herself, straddling him, as his hands went to cup her breasts. He began massaging them as she started rocking her hips, making up the pace she wanted. He moaned, clearly appreciating her choice, rolling her nipples in between his fingers. She threw her head back, enjoying the feeling, gripping his thighs to have some kind of support. She felt her heart about to break her ribcage, but she didn't do anything but move faster on top of him, as he let out a groan.

"Shit, Hanna..." he grunted, moving his large hands to grip her hips.

He followed the movements of her waist, accompanying her, as she dug her fingernails into the flesh of his thighs. She stilled for a moment, enjoying the feeling of his cock starting to throb into her, and Caleb took that moment to push her lightly, encouraging her to turn around. She lifted herself for a moment, swinging one of her legs over to be able to turn around, then she set herself back on him, giving her back at his eyes, taking his member into her hand and placing it at her entrance. He just push himself up slightly and he was right back into her, as Hanna moaned at the new angle just found. He kept her steady gripping her hips again, and she sustained herself placing her hands on top of his. She let herself guide by Caleb, who began lightly pushing her waist back and forward exactly the way he liked, moaning in pleasure. Her perfect rounded ass was now in full-display to him, and he couldn't feel more ecstatic. Soon she felt comfortable with the pace and took the dominance of it, easily moving the way she preferred. Caleb grunted again, leaving the control to her, feeling closer and closer to reach his peak, and began massaging her soft asscheeks. Hanna sighed, feeling close too. Right then, Caleb understood he would soon come if she wasn't going at least to slow down, so he sat up and put a hand on her lower belly.

"Baby..." he whispered panting, placing his head on her shoulder.

She got the message and stopped moving, relaxing into his arms for a moment. His hand traveled up her belly, cupping her breast again as she threw her head back against his shoulder. He massaged it and kissed her temple softly, then he suddenly thrusted up into her. Hanna wasn't expecting it and gasped, but she felt even more surprised when his free hand reached her clit, starting to rub it with two fingers.

"Caleb..." she mumbled, biting her bottom lip as he thrusted upwards once again and kept rubbing her clit.

He kissed her cheek, feeling her inner muscles starting to twitch around him, then he knew the moment of releasing was coming for both. He put his hands back on her hips and rolled her over, so that they both went on their side, still one into the other. He kissed and sucked on her shoulder as he restarted thrusting, this time roughly. Hanna moaned and put her hands over his again, gripping them as she felt her orgasm about to explode inside of her. He grunted as he felt her twitching become harder around him, clear sign that she was on the edge, so he pushed even faster and deeper inside of her and she finally let out a liberatory scream as she released her orgasm. Her walls then became too tight for him to handle, forcing him to come the second later she did. He groaned and allowed himself to, smothering his groan gently biting on her shoulder. She gave him a few seconds to recover his senses before turning her head slightly to kiss him. He kissed back, rubbing circles on her belly with his thumbs as she felt his abs still twitching against her back and his cock still weakly throbbing inside of her.

"I love you." he whispered when their lips parted.

"I love you too." she admitted, not containing a small smile.

* * *

Hanna's head was lying on Caleb's abdomen, while he played with her hair with one hand, and his other one was held by both of hers. Her ocean blue eyes were studying the ceiling of the boat, realizing she had never actually been on a boat before. They had decided to turn on at least the abajour of the nightstand, in order to have a better look of each other.

"Shall we just...leave?" he whispered then, twirling one of her long locks around his index.

"We can't." she whispered back, rubbing the back of his other hand.

He sighed, knowing she was right. They really needed to sort a lot of things out, not running away like criminals. They hadn't done anything wrong.

"We should go to your place tomorrow, actually. I want to talk with your mom." he said then.

She turned her head to look at him.

"Okay." she whispered simply, appreciating that he cared so much about her mom's opinion about the whole thing.

"Anyway... Tomorrow's also gonna be our last day of work before summer. I decided to anticipate the vacations. That's what I was checking on my laptop earlier. No one of my clients has particular needs at the moment, so... I just thought it would be better for me to focus on myself...and _us_. I neglected our relationship for too long already." he continued.

Hanna smiled at his last words, rolling on her side, still half-lying on his abdomen, before pressing a soft kiss on his abs. He let go of her hand to rub her cheek, smiling back, but it was just a matter of seconds before she took his hand back in both of hers.

"I'm so happy you decided to forgive me." he whispered then, looking serious.

"Well... These last days have been crazy for you, so they have been for me, and it's true that you did _a lot_ of stupid things, but... I know you're aware of your mistakes. It was hard to make up my mind, but... I can't just stop my feelings toward you. I think we deserve another shot, because... I know you really love me too. Now I'm more sure than ever."

"I do." he smiled.

She smiled back, making herself comfortable on his torso almost like his abs were her own pillow.

"How's Charlie doing?" he asked softly.

"He's great. I didn't take him here with me because it was kind of rushed when I left from my place, but he's with my mom. You know, she even bought him some toys for him to play with. She likes him. Maybe now, to punish you because we're together, she's not gonna give him back to you." she joked.

He laughed.

"Well... As much as I find your mom a very nice person, I would never leave Charlie to anyone, so... I guess I'll find away to take him back if your mom's gonna be too mad at me." he added then.

"Actually, I don't even know if she's mad. I mean, I've like spilled the whole story on her face and then I just left slamming the door shut. I'm not even sure she understood everything I told her."

"That's a reason more to talk to her tomorrow. We'll tell her everything together in a very calm way, alright?"

"Alright."

Then, she lifted herself and then lied completely down on his body, chest to chest. He chuckled as he circled her waist with his arms, while she rested her cheek against his shoulder.

"You're not scared about what people will tell about us once they know? I mean, if we're gonna retry, this time we're going to the very bottom of the thing, so..." she asked.

He kissed the top of her head before replying.

"We totally are. But I couldn't care less about people, seriously. These days without you because of my stupidness made me realize what I really care about. And that's not the reputation or what people think of me. I just care about being with you, that's it. Plus, I didn't do anything wrong. I just fell in love with my gorgeous secretary, so what? Yeah, people will probably see it as a cliché and stuff, also saying you're too young for me and shit, but... I really don't give a fuck. They can see it the way they want to, but only us know what there's between us."

Hanna sighed.

"Yeah, but... People have always seen you—" she began, but he cut him off.

"Hanna, hey... We already talked about this, once. I love my job but I also love you. What's so wrong about that? Look... I'm the same person I've always been, and if some people will think that being with you is something wrong or compromising, well, they can screw themselves up. I won't make the mistake of renouncing to you. Not again. _Never_ again."

She smiled as she rubbed her hand over his chest.

"I missed you, you know that?" she asked then.

"Trust me, I missed you more." he replied, kissing again the top of her head as he rubbed his hands up and down her spine.

"Anyway... I also wanna go see Melissa tomorrow."

Her sudden statement totally surprised him.

"W-What? Why?" he asked, searching for her eyes.

She made eye-contact with him and pursed her lips before replying.

"I never had a talk with her since she's back. I didn't even see her. I don't want to fight or yell at her or anything like that, I just want to meet her. After all, she's the woman whom you fell in love with to the point of marrying her. I want to talk to her, try to figure out what person she actually is. And... I also want to ask her how she would feel about having Wren back. Caleb, we want to bring him back, but we don't even know how she would feel about that. You and I fought too much over their baby, and I don't want to take any bumps in the road now. We need to sort this out, but we need to do things the right way. It's time to take care of everything if we want a happy ending for everyone. And believe me, I want it as much as you do."

He sighed, working the nerves on her shoulders with his thumbs. Then he slowly nodded, processing her words.

"You're right. Okay, fine...we'll go to her tomorrow." he announced then.

"Good. Now that we discussed everything, let's just not think about her or Wren or people or my mom anymore." she whispered, snuggling against his chest.

"I totally agree."

He kissed again the too of her head, looping his arms behind her soft back and closing his eyes before a thought suddenly crossed his mind.

"Baby?" he whispered.

"Mmh?"

"Weren't you...claustrophobic?"

She chuckled against his chest and he realized it was just a lie.

"Sorry about that." she grinned up at him.

Caleb grinned as well, shaking his head, then Hanna pressed a soft kiss on his lips before readjusting herself back against him, closing her eyes again.

"Goodnight." she whispered.

"Goodnight, you little liar." he chuckled before turning the abajour off.

* * *

 **A/N: Yeah, I know, this chapter was ridicolously long — you deserve a reward if you read it all in once :P — but I didn't realize how long it actually was while writing, and I didn't like it split. Plus, I figured you all would appreciate some smut and that it would make you forgive me for the waiting time :) So I obviously can't wait to know what you guys think! :D Also, I read your latest reviews and I absolutely have to thank some of the guests for the beautiful things they wrote, and of course thank you to every single one of you who took a moment to review :) You guys are seriously the best :) So, back to the story, some big things are happening next, apparently... You'll see Hanna and Caleb go talking to Ashley and also Hanna meet Melissa, and some development for the Wren thing as well. It's gonna be intense, right? ;) I hope you're liking the direction of the story and that you're happy about Hanna and Caleb making up... But of course, as usual, I'll wait for you to tell me. And feel free to ask or suggest whatever you want, I'm right here :D Okay, the chapter was long enough so I should probably stop here. Thank you all again, hope to hear from you :) Love you guys! xx -Atramea.**


	24. Chapter 24

Hanna woke up into a warm bed, between some dark red silk sheets and with a strong arm wrapped around her waist. She blinked several times to adjust to the light coming from the entry of the boat.

"Good morning, beautiful." Caleb whispered huskily behind her.

She smiled at his unexpected words — she honestly thought he was still sleeping.

"Morning." she replied softly, not bothering herself to turn around because she was too comfortable to think about moving.

Caleb lifted his arm to pull her hair to the side before pressing a soft kiss to the side of her neck. Hanna moaned slightly at the feeling, as he straightened up and placed his head on his hand, supporting himself on his elbow. With his free hand, he began rubbing her shoulders and upper arm, loving how soft her skin felt under his fingertips.

"Did you sleep well?" he asked.

Hanna finally rolled on her back, then turned her neck slightly to look up at him, and as soon as their gazes meet, they both couldn't help but smile widely at each other.

" _Very_ well." she confirmed, stretching her arms over her head.

He looked at her silently for a moment, still smiling largely at her, before lowering his head to reach her lips. His kiss started tenderly, just enjoying her smooth soft lips between his, but when he felt her close a fist through his hair, which was definitely start growing now, he couldn't hold back anymore. He parted her lips pushing his tongue into her warm mouth, as their noses bumped into each other. Hanna happily kissed back given how much she had missed those passionate kisses of his, burying her fingers through his locks. He pulled away and grinned down at her, pushing a loosen strand of her hair off her beautiful make up-free face.

"What would you like for breakfast?" he asked then.

She sighed happily, raising a hand to stroke his cheek before shrugging.

"You choose. I'll love anything made by you." she whispered then, smiling up at him.

He chuckled and nodded, then he bent down to print a kiss to her forehead before getting out of the bed, giving Hanna a full view of his very naked back. He pulled a pair of clean boxers from his drawer and slipped in them, running a hand through his hair while crossing the boat until he was in front of the fridge, from where he pulled out a carton of milk and some eggs. She smiled when he came back to her to hand her his shirt from the night before.

"You can take a shower or do whatever you want while I make breakfast." he added as she happily accepted his shirt.

"Thanks." she grinned, putting it on.

He winked at her before returning to the stoves, and felt surprised when, just seconds later, she wrapped her arms around his waist from behind, resting the side of her face against his bare back. Chuckling, he turned his neck slightly and looked down at her.

"I missed you. I missed _us_." she whispered then.

Those words just made his heart flutter. He turned around and lowered his head to kiss her, and when she responded, he picked her up and sat her on the counter, positioning himself in between her legs, as she shrieked. He pulled away and looked into her eyes so intensely that she could feel herself burning inside. Then, he rested his forehead against hers and looked down as he started to undo the few buttons of the shirt of his she was wearing that she had done, before looking back up at her.

"I love you, Hanna. And I'm not letting you go this time." he whispered as she just stared at him.

Next thing she know was that they were kissing again with such love and hunger that she didn't even fully control her hands when they roamed over his hard and toned abs to reach the waistband of his boxers, wanting to have all of him again, right there and then, just as much as he wanted all of her.

* * *

"Are you ready?" Caleb asked Hanna.

"Are _you_ ready? she asked back.

They were sitting into his car, parked in front of her house. The moment of talking together with her mother had finally come.

Caleb had actually been pretty nervous about what to wear. He wanted to appear the most elegant possible, but without exaggerating. In fact, when he had asked Hanna what she thought about his white buttoned shirt and his smooth black tie, she had just laughed, saying that the tie wasn't really necessary, so he had just taken it off.

Now there they were, inside the car, all ready to get out and knock on the front door, but for some reason, neither of them had hopped off the car yet.

"I am. I just feel a little embarassed for hiding the truth from her when she was so nice to me when I came for dinner." he shrugged, tapping his fingers against the wheel, staring at the house through the window.

" _Nice_? She didn't do anything but ask you tons of private questions and make you feel self-conscious!" she argued.

He smiled slightly.

"Whatever. Her amazing caesar salad made it up for that." he added then.

"Well... I love it too, but still... Look, you told her the truth that night. You just didn't tell her that the girl you were seeing was me."

"Which was just a little detail, right?" he raised an eyebrow at her.

"Whatever." she rolled her eyes.

"Anyway... I guess we can go knocking now."

Hanna bit her lower lip, looking at the front door from her car seat.

"Just one thing, Caleb." she murmured.

He looked at her and nodded, so she went on.

"I love my mom like no one in this world. She's the most important person of my life and I really care about what she thinks, so obviously I hope she's gonna be kind of fine with this, but I want you to know that... That I love you too. And I'm not gonna let you go either this time. I don't want to renounce to anyone of you two. I want you both in my life, so... If she doesn't accept our relationship, well, I'll do whatever it takes to make her do that. And if she gets to know you, I'm sure she will understand what you're worth by herself. I just wanted you to know that before anything, before whatever it's gonna happen and be said in there."

He smiled at her and put a hand on her knee, stroking her skin.

"It's gonna be okay, baby. Maybe it could take some time, but everything's gonna be alright eventually. I'm sure your mom will understand." he told her gently.

She sighed, looking outside.

"I hope so." she murmured then.

After a few seconds of silence, she suddenly remembered something, so she turned to Caleb and raised her eyebrows at him.

"Oh, by the way, you could've told me that on the back of Charlie's tag there were not only your first and last name, but also your freaking address. I don't know, you could've put your tax code as well, just to be sure." she snapped.

Caleb took a second to process her words before laughing slightly.

"Shit... That's how your mom found out?" he asked then, rubbing his eyes.

"Yes. One night we had a talk about this mysterious guy who I was seeing, and then I might have told her that Charlie was this guy's dog, so... When she noticed your name on his tag, I guess she just put all the pieces together."

"I'm sorry. I totally forgot about that." he shrugged.

"Whatever, she had to know one way or another. Yeah, it would've been better not in that way, I'd rather have had us talking with her first, but now... What is done, is done. Here we are now." she smiled at him.

He nodded, giving her knee a squeeze before finally getting out of the car. He walked to the other side and opened the passenger door for Hanna, holding his hand out for her. She took it, then Caleb closed the door and then locked the car, shoving the keys into the pocket of his shirt. He turned back to her, giving her a reassuring smile while interlacing their fingers together. They walked to the front door and shared one last look before Hanna raised her hand and finally knocked on the wooden surface.

Ashley Marin opened the door just a few seconds later, and a very excited Charlie appeared from behind her legs and jumped on Caleb as soon as he saw him.

"Buddy, hey!" he whispered to him stroking his back, then made some sign with his fingers and the dog immediately stilled and sat next to him.

Then, Caleb held his free hand out to Ashley, the other one still holding Hanna's.

"Hi, mrs Marin. It's nice to see you again." he told her.

Ashley looked from him to her daughter, then down to their joined hands, and finally back to Caleb. She eventually shook his hand, looking into his eyes.

"Likewise, doctor Rivers." she said.

"Caleb, please. Call me Caleb." he told her as they let go of each other's hands.

Ashley turned her attention to Hanna.

"Hi, mom." Hanna murmured awakwardly, tightening her hold on Caleb's hand.

"Hi." Ashley replied steadily.

There were a few seconds of an awkward silence before Ashley finally made some room for them to get in, Charlie following the pair before lying on the carpet.

"So... I hope that finally someone's gonna explain me what exactly is going on here." the woman commented as she closed the door and joined Hanna and Caleb in the living room.

"That's what we're here for, mom." Hanna said as she took a seat on the couch with Caleb.

"Well then, how about you start telling me where you spent the night?" Ashley asked her.

"She was with me." Caleb replied for Hanna.

Ashley pursed her lips and slowly nodded, as she was already aware of that.

"How long have you two been seeing each other?" she asked then, looked from her daughter to Caleb.

"It's... A couple of months, almost." he replied again.

Ashley nodded again.

"I want to apologize, mrs Marin, for not telling you everything when I came here for dinner. The truth is that Hanna was already ready to make our relationship... _public_ , but I wasn't, not yet. So if you didn't know sooner, it was just because of me." he continued.

"Let me just ask you something, doctor. Was it true that you and your wife broke up because she cheated on you, or...actually, it was the other way around?" Ashley asked.

"Mom, you know I wouldn't do _that_. Especially given what both you and I went through." Hanna argued.

Caleb cleared his throat sensing the tension in the room before replying to Ashley.

"My wife and I broke up almost a year ago, mrs Marin. I didn't even know about Hanna's existance at that time. No one knew that Melissa had cheated on me and left the country with another man. I just kept it for myself. I didn't want to be humiliated by people. And I kind of closed in myself after what happened. I couldn't even picture myself with another woman by my side, I swear. But then... Then I met Hanna. She had a boyfriend back then, so the first times I was just happy to see such a beautiful and smiley girl lighten up the mood at work, but... Honestly, I immediately felt like I had to protect her, someway. And then, well, there was this day where she opened up with me about what had happened between her and Sean, and we kind of suddenly understood how close we already were, without knowing. She just stayed at my place for dinner, we talked and talked and then I took her home. We just...developed this nice habit of sharing a couple of glasses of wine while talking about each other, and... Well, we slowly realized that we liked each other, like, _a lot_ , despite the age difference and the fact that I was her boss. Our relationship has never had anything dirty or wrong in it, mrs Marin. It's born slowly, grew up quickly, faced a lot of difficulties, but it has always been nothing but a _wonderful_ thing. It's just been a secret because of my insecurity, but again, that wasn't Hanna's fault, believe me."

Ashley looked at Caleb throughout his whole speech, trying to understand how honest he was being.

"Hanna said a person of your past came back recently and caused your relationship a few issues. Is that your wife?" she asked then.

Caleb slowly nodded.

"Yeah. She came back and... She's pregnant. Not of me, clearly, but... She asked for my help since her man dumped her, and let's say that I actually gave her _too much_ help, that's why Hanna decided to take a break from...us. It was obviously too much for her to take in." he added then.

"But... We sorted things out now. We're together, mom, and we _want_ to be together." Hanna continued with decision.

Ashley sighed and rubbed her forehead for a moment.

"I'm sorry for not acting like I should have done, because I should have come here to tell you the truth so much earlier than today, but... I love your daughter, mrs Marin. I really do. I'm clearly not a kid anymore, so I assure you that Hanna is not a whim to me. Absolutely, believe me. That's why I truly hope you're gonna be fine with our relationship. I promise I'll take care of her." Caleb concluded then, sincerely.

Ashley just looked from him to Hanna, silent, before Caleb felt the need to add something.

"I applied for the divorce from my wife, of course. Unfortunately, she's been facing some difficulties throughout her pregnancy, so she is currently stuck in bed, that's why the divorce will take a little longer than I expected. But I already spoke with my lawyer and everything, and If I finally found the strength to do that, it's just because of Hanna. I really want to be with her."

Silence from Ashley, again.

"Mom, please, say something. I'm sorry if I lied to you, or, well, if I kept things from you. But, look, I'm here now. I'm here to tell you that I love Caleb just like he loves me, and that there's nothing wrong in this. Soon he's not gonna be a married man anymore, he may be nine years older than me, but, mom, the time we spent together made us realize that this age difference is absolutely not a distance to us. What else? Oh, yeah, the fact that he's my boss and I'm his secretary? Well... What can be so wrong about that? We work together and we do what we have to do as we've always done, plus, honestly, we liked each other from the very first day, but this has never compromised our work, never, not even when we kind of broke up. So... We're just two people who fell for each other mom. That's what we are." Hanna told her mom then.

Ashley, finally, cleared her throat and said something.

"Look, Hanna... It's kind of hard to me, but I do have to realize that you're no longer a kid. You're twenty-three. You'll soon finish college. You're the one who brings the money home, and honestly, I feel really sorry for that. But, well... You're a _woman_ by now. And as much as I don't want to recognize it because I don't really want to think about my life with you away from me, I have to admit that it's true. I can see it from the light in your eyes when you talk about something you have passion for, from the way you express your ideas, from a lot of other things that just make me so proud of you. So I just... I have to let you go. You're grown enough to make your choices, to understand by yourself whether they're good or bad, to take your decisions assuming your own responsabilities. Besides, the truth is that I've always liked you, doctor. I've always thought you were a good and kind man. So... Well, I admit that I'm gonna need some time to get used to this situation, because, I gotta be honest, I would have never imagined you two as a couple... _couple_. But... Well... I guess I'm...kind of fine with this thing. She seems to care so much about you and you seem to feel the same, so I can only trust you guys. Plus, the fact that you're mature is...good to me. Despite I realized that my daughter is a big girl by now, I actually feel safer knowing she's with a man instead of some twenty-ish party-guy. And again, you seem a really nice person, doctor. But please, don't make me regret what I'm saying... Don't break Hanna's heart again."

Caleb smiled at her and nodded, as Hanna literally jumped from her seat to reach her mom, throwing herself into her arms.

"Thanks for understanding... I love you, mom." she whispered to her.

Ashley caught a tear fallen from her own eyes before Hanna could have a chance to see her emotion and hugged her daughter back.

"I love you too, sweetie." she whispered then.

Hanna slowly pulled away and Caleb got up from his own seat to approach Ashley as well.

"I won't make her suffer again, mrs Marin. You have my word. But, again, don't call me 'doctor'... Caleb is better, right?" he said to the woman, smiling charmingly.

"Alright, Caleb. I trust you." Ashley replied, smiling back slightly.

"Thank you. I promise I'll do my best not to make you see me as the man who took your daughter away from me but as the man who makes your daughter happy. Also, thank you so much for looking after Charlie these days. I hope he's acted polite." he continued, smiling over to where his dog was lying.

"He's a good boy." Ashley smiled.

"Told you." Hanna added, smiling at her mom.

"Well, then... Will you guys stay for lunch?" the woman offered then.

"Oh, it would be great, but... We need to sort some other stuff as well. We pushed it back for too long already." Hanna replied, eventually turning toward Caleb, who slowly nodded.

"Yeah, she's right. But, mrs Marin, I'm sure we're gonna have the chance soon. It will be a true pleasure." he said then, smiling at Ashley.

"Sure. Whenever you want." she said then.

Hanna linked her fingers through Caleb's and then spoke again.

"Well... Thank you so much for your comprehension, mom. I'm so happy you understood."

"I'm happy too." Ashley replied.

"I'm taking Charlie back with me, is that okay?" Caleb asked then.

"Oh... Yes, of course. But bring him back here sometimes... I'm gonna miss him." the woman said then.

Caleb and Hanna chuckled before walking to the front door with Ashley following behind them. He quickly put the leash to Charlie and, after Ashley gave the dog a caress, Caleb and Hanna were finally ready to go. They both said their goodbyes to Ashley —Hanna also told her that she would bring her car back home by that night— and then hopped into his BMW, ready for their next stop.

Hanna was finally going to meet Melissa.

* * *

 **A/N: Hello lovelies :) So we finally saw Hanna and Caleb talking to Ashley about their relationship! I hope you enjoyed that, even though I'm also a bit nervous since you all seemed to be waiting for it, so let me know if you liked it :) And I'm really happy for all the reviews you guys left for the last chapter :) Seriously, the fact that you enjoyed it and that you were so excited seeing how long it was, actually made me smile :D So... Obviously, the next chapter will be about Hanna meeting Melissa. I hope you're looking forward to that ;) I have a few ideas about their "women talk", so... I'm gonna do my best to make it explosive :P But for now, I'd like to know if you were happy about this one, so I hope you're gonna review :) Your thoughts mean a lot to me :) And if someone also wants to see something happen between Hanna and Melissa for the next chapter, they can write it in a review or in a PM or whatever — I've already received a few. I'll try to put your ideas in it ;) So... I'll be waiting :) And I'll update as soon as possible! Have a nice Sunday everyone and thank you so so much for your support! Love you all! xx -Atramea.**


	25. Chapter 25

"Are you sure you wanna do this? I still think it's not necessary." Caleb muttered to Hanna as he pulled into the driveway of his house.

"It _is_ necessary. I'm sure." she replied.

He sighed as he parked his car, then leaned back into his seat and watched her unfasten her seatbelt.

"However... I'm really happy about how things went with your mom." he said softly.

Hanna turned to him and smiled.

"So am I. I told you she liked you." she added then with a light shrug.

"Well... One thing is that she likes me as doctor Rivers who brings her daughter back home safe and sound when her car dies, another is that she likes me as Caleb who's her daughter's boyfriend."

"Did you just say _'boyfriend'_?" she laughed.

He rolled her eyes.

"Why the fuck do you always have to notice _every single word_ I say?" he chuckled, a little embarassed.

"Oh... Someone's blushing!" she exclaimed, laughing.

Caleb turned away to hide his face from her, but she jumped on his lap and straddled him, taking his face between her hands and turning him back to her. She leaned in and pressed her lips against his, smiling into the kiss. He automatically rested his hands on either side of her hips, as they let their tongues play between their mouths. At some point, she pulled away and smiled down at him.

"You're cute." she whispered.

"And you're hot." he replied, grinning up at her.

She giggled, and leaned forward to kiss him again, but as she bent down, her back accidentally came in contact with the wheel, making the horn beep and echo down the whole road. Charlie barked from his place into the car and Caleb laughed, gently pushing Hanna off his lap.

"I guess this is not the right time and _place_." he commented then, smiling over at her as she came back into her seat.

"Probably, because actually it's time to meet the one and only Melissa Rivers."

Caleb sighed.

"Don't call her that." he muttered then.

"Caleb, that's her name."

"Yeah, but that'd be _my_ last name, and I swear that she'll lose it soon." he pointed out, snorting while unfastening his own seatbelt.

Then, he got out of the car and helped her out taking her by the hand before opening the trunk to free Charlie, who happily ran all around his familiar surroundings. Caleb closed the trunk and locked his car before rejoining his and Hanna's hands, then they walked to the front door.

"Baby, listen... She's probably gonna tell you a lot of bullshit. Just don't give her too much attention, please. Don't let her make you feel bad, she's not worth it." he murmured, playing with his keys into his free hand.

"That's pretty much what I told you just days ago. But, look... She's here now, she lives in your house, this situation sucks but we're here now and we have to deal with it, even if we sorted things between us out. I just think I need to talk to her, at least _meet_ her. Of course I'm not here to get a new friend, don't worry."

He took a deep breath before nodding and putting the key into the lock, finally opening the door. They entered a clean and totally silent living room, just like the rest of the floor.

"Lucy's probably upstairs with her." Caleb told Hanna, leading her up the stairs still holding her hand.

In fact, when they got upstairs, they heard light noises —probably coming from a TV— from the guest room. They walked and then stopped on the doorframe, seeing the nurse just about to take away what remained of a rich breakfast and Melissa slightly sat up in bed, currently busy to fix the blankets around her waist.

"Oh, good morning, doctor Rivers. It's nice to see you here." Lucy greeted when she became aware of his presence.

Caleb grinned at her and let go of Hanna's hand only to sneak it behind her waist, slightly pushing her forward.

"Lucy, meet Hanna, my girlfriend." he said.

Although Hanna was busy to look over to where Melissa was —and she was unsurprisingly glaring back at her—, she suddenly came back to her senses as the nurse held out a hand to her.

"It's really nice to meet you, Hanna. I'm Lucy." the petite woman introduced herself.

"Nice to meet you too, Lucy." Hanna finally shook her hand, smiling at her.

"Well... I'm downstairs if you need anything." Lucy concluded, excusing herself as Caleb gave her a short nod.

When Lucy was outside of the room, Caleb led Hanna closer to Melissa's bed with his arm around her waist.

"Hanna... That's a nice name." Melissa commented as the pair approached her.

"Thanks." Hanna muttered.

"So I finally meet you. This is gonna be interesting. And hey, Caleb, welcome back." Melissa continued.

Caleb sighed.

"If it was for me, I wouldn't be here. However, I hope you're doing good." he added then.

"I am." Melissa confirmed.

Then, Hanna turned to Caleb.

"Could you please leave us alone?" she asked him quietly.

He furrowed his eyebrows.

"What? Why?" he asked skeptically.

"Just... I want to talk with her. In private." she whispered in reply.

Caleb sighed, looking from her to Melissa, then focusing his eyes on Hanna's again.

"I'm going to smoke a cigarette. I'll be in the garden." he muttered then.

"Thank you." Hanna murmured as he kissed her forehead.

After that, he turned to Melissa and looked straight into her hazel eyes.

"Careful with what you say." he recommended before turning on his heels and leaving the room.

Hanna looked over at him until he had closed the bedroom door before taking a seat on the chair next to the bed.

"Why did you decide to come here? I guess this is not Caleb idea." Melissa asked immediately.

Hanna shrugged slightly before replying.

"You know, I was curious, before anything. I saw pictures of you, but meeting you is another thing. You were Caleb's wife, and—"

"I _am_ Caleb's wife." Melissa punctualized, smirking deviously.

Hanna raised her eyebrows.

"Well, _technically_ , you still are, yeah. But not for much longer, trust me." she said then, cockily.

Melissa laughed slightly.

"Caleb has always liked sassy girls." she added then, shaking her head.

"I bet he has."

"So, Hanna... How old are you?"

"Twenty-three."

Melissa made a face, but Hanna ignored her.

"How long have you been fooling around with Caleb?" the older woman asked again.

"Sorry?" Hanna raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, c'mon... I know his _hidden talents_."

Hanna took a deep breath before replying.

"Caleb and I are not just fooling around. We're together."

"Yeah, right... You're _his girlfriend_. Since when, exactly?"

"Around two months."

Melissa laughed slightly.

"You know, before Caleb called me 'his girlfriend', I had to wait almost a year. And then another couple of years before he proposed." she said then.

"Well, we're talking about two different relationships. And two different people, of course."

"Of course. So, tell me... You work for him?"

"Yeah. I've been his secretary for several months now. However, we're currently off for summer vacations."

"I see. Younger girl, in college, his secretary... Kind of cliché, isn't it?" Melissa raised her eyebrows.

"How do you even know I'm attending college?" Hanna asked back as an answer.

"Well... You know, Caleb used to talk a lot about you when he was still living here. Speaking about that, did he tell you that we kissed a few days ago?" Melissa asked, raising her eyebrows at Hanna in a provocative way.

Hanna bit her bottom lip and looked down for a moment before lifting her head and look directly at her again.

"I know it was _you_ who kissed him. He called me right after it happened. And that's why he lost it and moved out of his own house. You took advantage of his kindness." she replied with decision.

"Yeah, right... And you believe him? Look at our situation. Dear, although now he's staying somewhere else, your _boyfriend_ is letting me stay in his house, the same we shared for a few months, he took me from a hospital without I asked and brought me here. He married me a year ago. He wanted to spend the rest of his life with me, and the only reason that's not happened is because _I_ left. If it wasn't for me, Caleb wouldn't be with you now. He would still be with me. Don't you think that maybe he had a moment of weakness that night and kissed me? Then he thought about you, so he called you and told you to feel less guilty with himself, then he even left to avoid any other moments of weakness... Don't you think it would make more sense?"

Hanna stayed silent for a moment, then Melissa went on.

"Just remember, whenever you feel his lips on yours, whenever he touches you, whenever he goes inside you...that those lips, those hands and that body, kissed _me_ , touched _me_ and _fucked_ _me_ before you. Whatever happened the night of that kiss, if it was me or him, well... You're free to think about it the way you want to, but... What I just told you is totally the truth, you know it, and you just have to deal with it."

Hanna really wanted to slap her in that moment, _hard_. But she knew Melissa was saying those things in order to make her lose it, and she wouldn't let her. So, she cleared her throat and tried to move the topic away from Caleb.

"Is... Is your baby okay?" she asked then.

Melissa sighed and rubbed her hand over her own belly, deciding not to press her any further. She knew she had already moved something inside Hanna, so she was already satisfied and stopped there.

"Yeah, she is. She just needs so much rest." she replied then.

"Have you thought about the fact that she's not gonna have a father figure in her life?"

Melissa glanced at her when she heard that question, which she absolutely wasn't expecting to hear.

"This is none of your business, kiddo. Fucking doctor Rivers doesn't make you anyone." she snapped then.

Hanna sighed and scratched the back of her neck.

"I was just wondering if... You know, if you ever feel the need to have her dad back with you, despite what happened between the two of you." she continued then.

Melissa bit her lip and looked away.

"I'm not answering these questions. Nor if they're asked by you." she muttered.

Hanna took a deep breath and tried to continue.

"I guess you know that Caleb's a really good man. He doesn't want a bad future for you and your baby, so he thought about doing something. He wants a dad for your baby. Her true dad. He was thinking about speaking to Wren, to try to make him reason."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Melissa snapped, turning back to Hanna.

"Look... How would you feel about seeing Wren again?"

"This is pointless. He will never cone back to me. He knows I'm pregnant with his child, but he doesn't care since he left me. And, again, I'm not talking about this with you."

"Melissa, the only thing I think Caleb, you and I all want, is for your baby to be okay. It would be just a try, but I think it's worth it. Think about your daughter. This is not about your relationship with Wren or Caleb or anyone, this is just about the baby you're carrying. Not having a father in her life will be a big loss, trust me. My dad and my mom split up years ago, and he's basically not part of my life anymore. And I swear it sucks. Caleb can tell it too. Anyway, we're talking about your daughter, so... If you're against all of this, then this is not going anywhere. I asked Caleb to talk to you about it first right because of that."

Melissa stayed silent. Hanna sighed as she leaned back into her chair.

"Okay. You don't have to answer. But... Let me just ask you one last question, then I'll leave." she said then.

Melissa didn't say anything once again, just looked at Hanna, waiting for her to ask her question, so she did.

"Why in the world did you cheat on Caleb?"

Melissa let a small smile appear at the corner of her mouth before replying.

"Well... Caleb was probably too good for me. In all honestly, anyway, after being with him for a few years, I felt bored. But he was blind because he loved me, so he didn't notice. In the end, I married him because I wanted his money, and of course he wasn't expecting that. He's good, he has always good purposes, but he's also naive... And I'm not like him. We're different. We've always been. That's why I preferred someone else at some point. Now, he thinks he found someone more similar to him... Poor him when he realizes that you're just trying to put your hands on his money, just like I did."

Hanna raised her eyebrows and shook her head, chuckling because of the absurdity of her words.

"I'm not like you, sorry to break the news." she said then.

"Yeah, yeah... Girl, what do you think? Sooner or later, you will get tired of him. He's very good sex, yeah, he's really sweet and caring and has a way with words, but I still think he's too adult for you. He's not the kind of guy you need by your side and soon you'll keep being with him just because of the pool, the classy restaurants and the trips by boat. Men like Caleb get boring at some point, especially for a young girl like you. Trust me, I've been there."

"That's not true. But, honestly, I don't care about what you think." Hanna replied icily.

"Yeah, right. But let me just say that you look like you're still thinking about what I told you earlier, though. Maybe what I think actually counts something to you."

Hanna clenched her jaw and looked down, just when Caleb came back into the room.

"What's going on here?" he asked suspiciously, looking at the expression on Hanna's face.

"We just had a little women talk." Melissa replied.

He sighed and walked to Hanna, placing his hand on her shoulder.

"You done here? Can we go?" he whispered then, rubbing circles on her skin.

Hanna nodded before standing up from the chair. Caleb then turned to Melissa.

"I think Hanna told you what we're trying to do for your baby. I know that you probably don't like the idea, but... The only thing I feel to ask you right now is to think about it. Try to think about your daughter and not about yourself, just for once." he told her.

Melissa looked at him before simply turning her head in the opposite direction.

"Have a good day, you both." she muttered then.

Caleb sighed and took Hanna's hand, leading her outside of the room and then downstairs, to the living room.

"Have a seat. We can hang here for a little. Eat something, take a bath or a swim... Whatever you want." he told her then, smiling.

Hanna sighed and shook her head.

"Can we just take Charlie and head back over to the boat? I don't feel comfortable to be here now." she mumbled.

Caleb nodded but furrowed his eyebrows. He took her face in between his large hands and looked straight into her blue orbs.

"Okay. But...is everything alright? What did she tell you?" he asked earnestly.

"Nothing. I just... I wanna be with you, but not here."

"I knew talking to her was a bad idea—"

"Caleb, please. I told you it's nothing. Let's just go." she cut him off.

He sighed before finally agreeing.

"Okay. Let's go."

When they hopped into the car, though, Caleb noticed Hanna was still thinking about something, probably something Melissa had told her. He sighed and grabbed her hand, placing it on top of his leg and rubbing his thumb over the back of it.

"Baby... Will you tell me what's bugging you? I told you not to listen to that rotten mouth of Melissa's, but if there's something that she told you which actually made your mind go somewhere, please, just...talk to me. Please." he whispered then.

Hanna sighed, looking outside the window.

"It's not like she actually told me bullshit, she just...made me see some things from another point of view. And that's been making me think." she breathed out then.

"Okay, well... Try to talk to me about it. What are you thinking about?"

Hanna took a deep breath, turned back to him and then tried to explain what she was feeling.

"Well... She pointed out that she was the one who left you, not the other way around. That's why you two broke up. I mean, if it wasn't for her, you two would probably be still together. If she hadn't cheated on you, you two would still be married. So... I don't know, you're here with me now because of her, kind of. It's weird."

He sighed, still holding her hand in his, then replied.

"Well... Yeah, that may be true, on one hand. But she did what she did because she's the person who she is. I mean, the person whom I had fallen in love with doesn't actually exist, because that person would have never betrayed me that way. So, our relationship was totally false, from the very start. I hadn't fallen in love with Melissa, I had fallen in love with the person I thought she was. But she's not that person. What I'm trying to say is that even if she hadn't cheated on me, something would have happened sooner or later which would have made me realize who she really was, because I had the wrong idea about her. And once I would have known, we would have broken up. Maybe it would have been me, maybe it would have still been her, but the thing is that Melissa and I didn't work together. We never worked, we would have never worked. It wasn't love between us, it was just...a lie, an illusion, a _cheat_. That's what it was. So the point is not why we broke up, because it's clear that what was between us was false and we would have broken up anyways, one way or another. And, Hanna, you were the one who made me realize that I had all the rights to start over after all the mess of my marriage. You made me understand that I had to get over it. Plus, I could say the same about you and Sean... If he hadn't cheated on you, you wouldn't be here with me. But it's not actually right, for the same reasons I just told you. Your relationship with Sean was false too, and you two would have broken up anyways, even if it wasn't for his cheating. It's the same thing, Hanna. And you know what? Who cares what brought us here, in the end? I'm just freaking glad we _are_ here, together. Life is the only thing which brought us together, probably."

She sighed and processed his words. He did have a point, indeed.

"Yeah. Yeah, you're probably right." she mumbled then.

Caleb brought her hand to his lips and kissed her knuckles before looking back at her, still seeing her annoyed by something.

"Well... Either my speech sucked, or there's something else that is bothering you. So what is it?" he asked again.

Hanna sighed again before readjusting herself against the car seat.

"She basically said you were the one who kissed her that night, not the other way around." she said then.

Caleb shook his head in disbelief as he rolled his eyes.

"I had to expect that. Of course it's a lie, Han. You know it." he breathed out then.

Hanna shook her head too, then rubbed her temple before replying.

"Yeah, I... I don't believe her. Of course I believe you, but... I don't know. I guess she just has a talent in annoying people. She kind of put that image in my head."

Caleb chuckled and let go of her hand just to lean in, to be closer to her, then cupped her face and stroked her cheeks gently.

"I told you she wasn't a nice person to meet. Now don't let her have such an influence on you, okay?" he told her.

She nodded, pursing her lips as she felt something inside of her loosening.

"You know, I think I can also arrange to replace that image in your head with another one..." he whispered then.

A giggle escaped from her mouth at his statement.

"Oh, yeah?" she raised an eyebrow at him.

Caleb nodded as he made an agreement verse before leaning in and pulling her lips to his, catching them as he kissed her. He didn't waste a second to push his tongue into her mouth, wanting to show her that she was the only one for him. He knew he had to cancel all of those bad thoughts from her head and knew that was the best method to do that. When he let go of her lips, in fact, she smiled at him and looked into his eyes through her thick eyelashes with that heart-melting look of hers.

"Thank you. And sorry if I acted kind of childish." she whispered.

"You didn't. I know how bothering she can be. It's okay." he replied softly before kissing her again.

* * *

 **A/N: So sorry for the long wait! I actually wanted to update yesterday but I had some issues with my internet connection, however it's finally here now :) So? Thoughts? Yeah, Melissa clearly showed her bitchy side with Hanna, but I guess you guys were expecting that. I thought, just like one of you suggested in a review, that they had to talk alone with no one else around, not even Caleb. By the way, you saw that Hanna later opened up to him to tell him about the insecurities Melissa had put into her mind, so... Did he completely reassure her or not? Who knows? :P Well, I just hope you enjoyed it, though :) Anyway, you'll see more Hanna/Melissa showdowns in the future ;) Also, I'm really happy you liked the previous chapter, the Caleb/Ashley "official" meeting ;) So, guys, thank you so much for the way you're supporting the story, I hope it's keeping you intrigued ;) Keep telling me what you like, dislike and everything, it's always nice to read what you all think :) I'll try to update the sooner I can :) Love you guys! xx -Atramea.**


	26. Chapter 26

Later, Hanna and Caleb had finally gotten back to his boat. Charlie had found his comfortable spot outside, on the roof, and now Caleb was coming back inside after checking on him. Hanna had taken a quick shower and was now lying on the bed with a singlet and a pair of sweats, staring at the ceiling. Caleb pulled his shirt over his head because of the early summer heat and tossed it to the floor before climbing next to her, lying on his stomach and looking up at her quizzically.

"Hey... Is everything okay?" he asked softly, stroking her arm.

She sighed, linking her hands on her own belly.

"Yeah, I was just thinking." she breathed out then.

"Bad thoughts? _Again_?" he raised an eyebrow.

Hanna pursed her lips and looked down at him.

"Caleb, I need to know what happened the night that you and Melissa kissed." she finally blurted out.

He snorted lightly, rolling his eyes.

"Hanna..." he began then, but he cut him off.

"No, Caleb. I wanna know."

"I already told you. She kissed me, I pulled away, stormed off the room, called you and told you. That's all that happened. It didn't mean anything, she just stole it from me."

She sighed, fiddling with her own fingers.

"Sorry." she muttered then.

Caleb sighed, running a finger up and down her bare arm as he replied.

"No, _I'm_ sorry. I didn't mean to be rude. I just hate the fact that Melissa could put all of these bad thoughts into your mind. It just drives me nuts."

Hanna shrugged slightly, looking back at him.

"I trust you, though. I know she just wanted me to lose it, and I had promised myself I wouldn't have let her, but I let her instead, but... But don't think that I don't trust you. I do. I let her mess with my mind, yeah, but I won't let her take you away from me, _again_. I don't want to lose you again." she said then.

He smiled, then lifted himself to be closer to her, sitting in front of her and spreading his legs, putting each of them on either side of her. He then cupped her face and stroked her cheeks gently.

"You won't, okay? I promise." he whispered then.

She nodded briefly, then he leaned in and kissed her. And just like basically everyone of their kisses, it started slow and gently but soon became heated and passionate. When his tongue bumped against hers, Hanna couldn't hold back a moan coming right from her throat, and pulled Caleb down to her making a pressure on his shoulders. He lied down on her body, as their tongues kept fighting for the dominance of their kiss, and slipped one hand underneath her singlet, making his way upwards until he reached her breast. He felt a wave of arousal when he found out that she had no bra on, cupping her breast and squeezing lightly just as Hanna pulled her mouth away from his to sigh deeply.

"Caleb..." she exhaled as he moved his head to nibble at her neck.

He pulled himself up, tugging at her singlet and urging her to lift herself slightly as well, and when she did, he easily slid her singlet off her body before finally throwing it away. He then focused back on her body, bending down to reach one of her hard nipples. He brushed the tip of his tongue over it, as she arched her back and tangled her hands through his hair, before he finally took it fully into his mouth and started sucking it. As Hanna let out another moan, he moved one of his hand lower to pull her sweats down, then he ran a finger up and down her underwear before leaving her breast to grin up at her.

"Wet..." he stated, pleased.

Hanna didn't have a chance to say anything because he suddenly put her panties to the side and slipped a finger inside of her.

"Shit..." she groaned, tugging at Caleb's hair.

He kept working on her nipple with his tongue and teeth as he started pumping in and out with his finger. At some point, he added another finger and her muscles started startling, her eyes closed shut and her moans became louder.

"You're so fucking beautiful..." he whispered hoarsely as he left a trail of kisses over her collarbone.

He felt her juices starting to drip down his fingers and knew she was close. So, he brought his thumb to her clit and started rubbing it furiously, as his mouth focused on the pulsepoint near her throat. Soon her walls began clenching around his fingers, she became tighter and tighter and then she finally screamed her orgasm out, suddenly closing her thighs and trickling her pleasure over Caleb's hand. He kept pumping in and out for a few seconds longer before pulling out for good, smirking up at her.

Hanna looked down at him with narrowed eyes, panting. Boy, he did know a way to make her bad images disappear from her mind. She quickly took back the control of her own body, so she brought her hands down to his jeans, quickly undoing his belt buckle and his button before pulling them down. Caleb did the rest, freeing himself from his boxers as he removed her panties for good. She eagerly pulled him down on top of her once again, craving him. She reconnected their lips as he lined himself with her sex, then he put his hands on her thighs to raise her legs of a little bit before finally thrusting into her.

Hanna gasped, breaking the kiss to bite down on his shoulder, burying her fingernails into his ass as he started moving slowly, rhytmically yet intensely into her. She felt so nice around him, so tight and hot that it was a challenge for him not to just fuck her hard and violently. He just groaned, brushing the thought off his mind, then squeezed her thighs as he went every thrust a little deeper, kissing her wherever he could.

And he made it all last as long as possible, despite his istincts.

* * *

"Was that enough to shake the bad thoughts off?" Caleb asked, reaching out to stroke Hanna's cheek.

They were both naked under the blankets, lying on their stomach, their heads turned to be able to look at each other. Hanna smiled at him and closed her eyes as she got relaxed under his touch, now actually free from all the bad images Melissa had put into her mind.

"Uhm... I guess so." she mumbled.

Caleb chuckled slightly, putting a strand of her hair behind her ear. Their moment was broken when Hanna's phone started ringing from into her purse, somewhere around the boat.

"Fuck..." she muttered under her breath, rolling her eyes.

"Don't take that." he suggested, but she was already getting up.

He watched as she quickly slipped into her underwear and jogged toward her purse, picking her phone from inside.

"Spence?" she answered, walking back to the bed.

"Hey, Han. How are you doing?"

"Well... I'd say good. You would actually need a catch up." she smiled as she settled back into bed, resting her back on Caleb's chest as he sat up to wrap his arms around her middle.

"You and Caleb?" Spencer teased.

"Maybe..." Hanna murmured as he kissed her bare shoulder.

Spencer squealed from the other line and Hanna laughed.

"Well, that's good news, since tonight I'm throwing Toby a party because tomorrow is his birthday, so we'll wait midnight all together. Obviously, you need to be there, and so does your guy. Toby has to meet him." Spencer continued.

"Party? Where?"

"At the usual club where we go for drinks, silly. Around ten. I'll see you and the doctor there. Bye!"

And then, Spencer just hung up. Hanna shook her head, sighing.

"Were you just invited to a party tonight? Are they trying to steal you from me?" Caleb whispered, slightly tickling her sides.

Hanna laughed and struggled against him until he stopped, then she replied.

"Actually, no one is trying to do that. You've been invited too."

He furrowed an eyebrow toward her.

"It's Spencer. I mean, it's her boyfriend's birthday and she set all of this thing up for him." she added then.

"Well... Do you really need to be there?"

Hanna shrugged slightly.

"Caleb, Spencer is my friend. And so is Toby. I kind of _want_ to be there, honestly." she confessed then, looking at him.

"Right."

"And I would really like if you came with me."

Caleb sighed lightly, slowly rubbing his hands up and down Hanna's bare arms.

"It's just that I was picturing our first public date a little...different." he mumbled then.

Hanna sat up and turned he body so that she could face him.

"What is that supposed to mean? You're too classy to show up to a simple birthday party in a club or what?" she asked, slightly disappointed.

"No, baby, I just... I guess I just wanted something better for us. You know, maybe I would choose a dinner in a nice restaurant to make us... _official_ , but it's fine, we'll just go with your friends. It's fine, really."

She sighed, shaking her head slightly.

"Well, I get it, you don't want to come. It'd be the first time that we show up together in public as a couple, and clearly you don't seem to be too keen about this simple party. Whatever, Caleb. You don't need to come." she muttered then.

"No, sorry, it's fine. Those are your friends, and I want to get to know them better, all of them. I want to get into your world. Just... Sorry about that."

Hanna sighed, fiddling with the blankets.

"Caleb, I don't really care if we go out on a date in a fancy restaurant or if we just eat a pizza sitting on an old couch. I'm just happy if I'm with you, no matter where we are or what we do. I just need to know if you feel the same or not." she breathed out then, looking into his eyes.

"I do." he nodded.

"Are you sure?"

"I'm sure."

"And are you sure you want to come to the party tonight? Be honest."

"Yeah, I'm sure, I promise."

He the reached out and pulled her body back to him, closing it into his arms.

"I'm not with you because you're rich and shit. I'm not like her." she mumbled then.

"Please, Hanna, stop talking and thinking about her. And, just for the record, I do know you're not like her. She doesn't have anything to do with you. Now... We're going out with your friends tonight. What do you think I should wear to make a good impression on them?"

Hanna smiled slightly. He had such an obsession with clothes, but she liked that he always wanted her advice about that.

* * *

"Hanna! Doctor!" Spencer squealed when she spotted Hanna and Caleb entering the club.

Hanna had asked Caleb more and more times if he was actually sure he wanted to come, and he had confirmed it, apologizing for the way he had first reacted to her proposal. She didn't want to force him, she clearly wanted to take him with her, but only if he wanted too. She had helped him choose his outfit, afterwards they had stopped by Hanna's house to take her car back to her place, then she had changed into a dress and they had finally gotten to the club for Toby's party.

"Hey!" Hanna grinned, letting go of Caleb's hand to hug her friend tightly.

"I'm so happy you made it!" the brunette girl said to her friend before pulling away and smiling up at Caleb.

"Spencer, please don't call me 'doctor'. Please." he rolled his eyes slightly, as both girls laughed.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Ready to meet my boyfriend?" Spencer replied.

"Sure." Caleb nodded, as Hanna took his hand back in hers.

The three walked into the club until they reached a table full of people. Caleb could recognize Emily and Aria between them, the other two friends of Hanna he had already met.

"Guys! Look who we got here!" Spencer announced half-shouting, gaining everyone's attention.

"Hanna!" a lot of the guys and girls exclaimed, standing up to greet her as many of them eyed Caleb in a suspicious way.

Aria and Emily came up to him noticing his awkwardness, asking him how it was going as the others hug and said hi to Hanna. When she was finally free, she linked an arm around Toby's shoulders and pulled him in front of Caleb.

"Caleb, this is Toby, Spencer's boyfriend. Toby, this is Caleb, my boyfriend. Spencer told me I could bring him." she said, smiling looking from one guy to the other.

"Of course. Doctor Rivers, I finally have the pleasure." Toby grinned, offering his hand to Caleb.

"It's nice to meet you too, Toby. But call me Caleb." the older guy replied, shaking his hand.

All of the guys invited to the party kept looking at him like he was an alien or something, though. They knew doctor Rivers. They knew Hanna was working at his studio. But they didn't know they were a couple, even though they had probably heard people gossip about them by now.

"So you two are together?" Noel Kahn, one of the guys at the table, asked, raising an eyebrow at Hanna.

He was one of Toby's friends who she couldn't stand at all.

"Yeah, we are." Hanna confirmed sassily, as Caleb just stared at him.

"How old are you, doctor?" Noel continued.

"Thirty-two." Caleb replied simply.

Noel grinned deviously before taking a sip from his glass, not commenting any further. An awkward silence —despite the loud music— fell on the table of the around twenty guys, but Toby quickly broke it, inviting Hanna and Caleb to take a seat as he relaxed an arm around Spencer's shoulders. The guys, though, occasionally whispered into each other's ears as they looked over at Hanna and Caleb, and she noticed it but didn't really care. She turned to Caleb, who had his gaze low to check his phone, and squeezed his knee.

"It's okay. Just let them talk." she whispered to him, smiling.

"I know. Don't worry, I'm fine." he whispered back, putting his hand over hers.

"They're not all my friends, you know. Some of them are real idiots." she muttered, rolling her eyes.

"Yeah, I noticed some." he grinned.

She chuckled before hugging his arm and resting her head against his shoulder, listening to Toby talk about random things, as both she and Caleb ignored the idiots who kept staring at them.

* * *

One hour and an half later, things had definitely loosened up. Most of the people —including Hanna— were a little tipsy, dancing on the dancefloor while some couples were making out in a corner, and then there were Caleb and Toby, sitting at the counter and drinking two beers while chatting.

"I've known Hanna for years. She's an explosive girl, always full of positivity, always smiley... She's really nice." Toby said, looking over at Hanna and Spencer who were dancing together.

"She is." Caleb grinned, looking over there too.

"Anyway, dude, I have to apologize. Some of the guys weren't really nice to you. You know, unfortunately not everyone is smart enough to go over clichés and stuff."

"No worries. Hanna and I were prepared. The thing is that people just keep seeing me as the married dentist of the town, and they'll probably keep doing that for a long time, you know. But they'll eventually get over that, sooner or later... I don't really care about them, to be honest, though. I just care about me and Hanna."

"So, if you don't mind me ask... How was it? Love at first sight or what?" Toby smiled, before taking a sip of his beer.

"Well... My wife and I had broken up since several months when I first saw Hanna, but she was with Sean back then. You know him, right?"

Toby rolled his eyes.

"That scumbag. He's a real idiot, seriously. I never liked him." he muttered then.

Caleb chuckled, taking a sip of his beer as well before continuing.

"Anyway, I kind of have to be thankful for the fact that Hanna was with him, because it was his father who made us meet. She was looking for a job to pay for college, so Sean told her that his father knew another dentist who was looking for a secretary. Well, that was me."

"Crazy." Toby shook his head.

"Yeah. And, well, I remember when John, Sean's father, came in my studio with her..."

* * *

 _Another Monday. Same old, same old._

 _Caleb had been feeling very stressful lately. Work wasn't really taking his mind off his failure of marriage._

 _Eight months earlier, Melissa Rivers had left the house in which they were living together as husband and wife with no explanation, taking away his last name and a lot of money with her. He really couldn't figure out where he had gone wrong, he just knew that she was gone._

 _At first, he had thought that having a lot of work to do would have been helpful to distract himself, but he was wrong. It only stressed him more, that's why he was waiting for John Ackard, one of his dentist friends, who had kindly found him someone who could help him to set his appointments and deal with the economic stuff of the studio._

 _Yeah, a secretary was probably what he needed._

 _It was an hour before he had to open the studio, but it was the only time John had said he could come, so Caleb hadn't had a problem. It meant that he would have more time to talk with his new secretary._

 _Finally, a knock came on his door. He cleared his throat and stood up from the desk chair he was sitting on._

 _"Come in." he said then._

 _John entered first, smiling widely at his collegue. A petite blonde girl followed behind him, but then Caleb saw with the corner of his eye that she was turning around, probably to close the door, so as he held out his hand to John, he said something to her._

 _"Don't worry, miss. Leave it open."_

 _"Morning, Caleb." John grinned as the two men shook each other's hand._

 _But Caleb was still looking at the girl, who had now turned back to him. She had those wonderful pair of blue eyes, which were curiously studying her —most likely— future boss._

 _"Morning, John." he finally replied, moving his attention back to John._

 _"So... She's Hanna Marin, my son's girlfriend. She's in college, so she would really use a job to save some money." John continued, placing a hand on Hanna's shoulder._

 _"Good morning, doctor Rivers." the young girl smiled shyly._

 _"Good morning, Hanna. It's nice to meet you." Caleb said as he held out his hand to her._

 _"Likewise." Hanna mumbled as she shook Caleb's hand._

 _Caleb immediately thought that the girl in front of him was absolutely cute. He liked how shy she looked, how tight her smile was, probably to hide her worry about the chance to get a job. But her eyes were something absolutely beautiful. She had the most beautiful eyes, Caleb thought. Her hand felt soft, although it was a little cold. He held her hand for a second longer before releasing it, smiling at her._

 _"Caleb, I promise, she's a good girl. You won't have a problem with her. However, I'm sorry but I really need to go. I hope you don't mind, I received a call... It's about work, of course." John interrupted his thoughts._

 _"No problem, John. Hanna, can you stay a little longer though, so I can explain you the...situation here?" Caleb replied, eventually turning to Hanna._

 _She nodded quickly, so Caleb said goodbye to John, then he sat back on his chair._

 _"Have a seat, please." he smiled at Hanna, who plopped in the chair across his desk._

 _Hanna knew him, of course. Who didn't know doctor Caleb Rivers in town? But she had never talked to him, nor seen him from that close. He was really good-looking, he looked younger than his age, and she found out he had also a good taste in colognes._

 _"So... I'm a little messed up. I waste a lot of time to set the next appointments with each patient after they come here, and also when they have to pay, meaning that I have to count how much they need to give me. I thought you could help me to organize my agenda, so that when a patient finishes their examination at my studio, they can come here, in this office, where you'd be here to take care of that kind of stuff. It shouldn't be anything too hectic, although there are days really full here... Like, twenty-ish patients a day." Caleb sighed, playing with a pen between his fingers._

 _"There's no problem, doctor." Hanna nodded._

 _"Have you ever done anything like that?"_

 _"No. Is... Is that a problem?" Hanna stuttered with a worried look into her eyes._

 _Caleb couldn't help but grin. Damn, she was definitely cute._

 _"No. No, it's not. Don't worry, it's okay." he reassured her, smiling._

 _"Oh, okay." she nodded again._

 _Caleb noticed the tension in the room, so he tried to make her feel comfortable._

 _"So you're in college... What do you study?" he asked, leaning back into his chair._

 _"Commerce."_

 _"Nice. How is it going?"_

 _"Well...good, I guess. I'm liking it so far."_

 _"Good. How old are you?"_

 _"Twenty-three."_

 _He nodded slowly, taking in all her features. She was more than just cute, actually._

 _"Alright, well... How about you come here from Monday to Friday at three pm? I usually finish around seven thirty, eight if the situation is a little worse, so it'd be the same for you. But if you need to come later because you have classes, there's no problem, we can—" Caleb started before she interrupted him._

 _"It's perfect, doctor."_

 _Caleb chuckled, and Hanna blushed furiously._

 _"Oh, my God, I'm... I'm so sorry, doctor, I didn't mean to interrupt you." she mumbled then, looking mortified._

 _He shook his head, smiling at her._

 _"It's okay, Hanna. Don't worry." he said then._

 _She bit her lip as Caleb poured two glasses of water, pushing one over the desk, toward her._

 _"Thank you." she murmured, taking a sip as he did the same._

 _"When would you like to start?" he asked then._

 _"So I'm hired?" Hanna asked surprised._

 _And Caleb smiled again._

 _"Of course." he added then._

 _"Thank you so much, doctor. I promise I'll do my best."_

 _Caleb laughed slightly._

 _"I don't doubt about that. So... When would you like to start?" he asked again._

 _"Whenever you want, it's fine."_

 _"Okay, so... What about next Monday? This way, you have time to organize yourself and see if you'd be comfortable with everything... And if you think you have a problem, you tell me and we try to figure something out together." Caleb shrugged._

 _"Perfect." Hanna smiled._

 _"Well... Let me show you around, then." he said then, standing up from his chair._

 _Hanna stood up as well and nodded, following him around the studio. He walked down the short hallway which connected the office to the studio, opening a door for her to see it inside._

 _"This is my studio, of course. The patients come here to be examinated by me, so afterwards they will come to the office to you. Whenever you need something, I'll be here. Just knock, though, because some patients don't like to be surprised while I'm shoving my hands into their mouths." Caleb chuckled._

 _Hanna chuckled as well as he closed the door again, then they got back to the studio, where he showed her his agenda and explained her how to organize the appointments. After that, Caleb smiled and told her she was free to go, but he also said something else._

 _"Just make sure you have a ride to come home when we finish and it's dark outside. Unfortunately, this neighborhood is most likely the worst of the whole town. Bad people are always around here, we're in the outskirts. So, I know you're big enough and everything, but I'd feel better if you don't have to wait outside."_

 _Hanna nodded with decision._

 _"I have my car, anyway my boyfriend can come to pick me up too. It won't be a problem. Thanks, doctor Rivers." she replied then._

 _"Good."_

 _They stared at each other for a moment, silent. Caleb was totally caught from her eyes. At some point, though, Hanna cleared her throat, awkwardly._

 _"Well, then I guess I'll see you next Monday." she mumbled, standing up and smoothing her flowered dress._

 _Caleb smiled and nodded, standing up as well. Why was he staring at her like an idiot?_

 _"I'll walk you." he announced, starting to walk down the hallway with Hanna following behind._

 _When they reached the entrance, he stopped and looked at her, still smiling._

 _"It's been a pleasure, Hanna. Oh, and... Call me for anything." he said then, taking a business card from the pocket of his white coat and handing it to her._

 _Hanna took it and smiled back at him._

 _"Thank you again, doctor. It was nice to meet you." she replied._

 _Caleb held out his hand to Hanna again, and she shook it before turning on her heels and exiting the studio. Caleb couldn't stop his eyes from falling down to her perfect little ass, perfectly hugged into that dress of hers. He bit his lip, also noticing how long and smooth were her legs, and when she disappeared from his view, he almost felt pissed._

 _John's son was one lucky guy, he thought._

 _Quickly shaking his head for such thoughts, he made his way back into the studio, but for some reason, he realized that the blonde girl with those magnetic blue eyes had been able to lighten up his mood, at least of a little bit._

 _She had probably been the best thing that had happened to him in the last eight months._

 _And he still didn't know how much she would mean to him._

* * *

"Caleb!" Hanna laughed as she basically collapsed on his body, clearly a little more than tipsy by now.

"Baby... How much did you drink?" he asked, gently settling her on his lap, as he noticed that a drunk Spencer had come up to Toby as well.

Hanna made herself comfortable on one of Caleb's legs, wrapping her arm around his shoulders as he brushed some of her hair off her face. She then placed a lingering kiss on his temple before resting her forehead against the side of his head and closing her eyes.

"A bit." she mumbled then, before kissing Caleb's head once again.

He chuckled at her drunken affection, rubbing her back, left exposed by her dress.

"Are you enjoying the party?" he asked.

She just nodded, before opening her eyes and looking down at him.

"Come dance with me." she smirked then, lightly brushing her fingernails over his stubble.

He chuckled and shook his head.

"That's not happening." he stated then, and she whined.

"Please, doctor!" she cried.

"No, Han. You know, actually I think it's time for you to get into a warm bed and get some sleep." he tried to reason with her.

"Ugh, that's not happening either." she muttered as she escaped from his grasp, walking over to Spencer and hooking an arm around her neck.

"Let's dance!" she shouted, as Spencer yelled something as well, clearly agreeing with her.

The two disappeared through the crowd as Toby turned to Caleb and shook his head, chuckling.

"I swear, they drink this much only when they're together and having fun." he said.

Caleb smiled at him and nodded.

Hanna was twenty-three, of course she liked drinking and dancing with her friends into a club. He knew it and he had to respect that, which was pretty much the reason he had eventually decided to come with her to the party that night. True, discos and loud music weren't really his thing, _at all_ , but they probably were Hanna's. And he accepted it.

In the meanwhile, Hanna and Spencer were jumping and shaking their hips on the dancefloor as if there would be no tomorrow, out of their guys' sight. They had stopped drinking by then, but of course they weren't sober anymore.

Hanna closed her eyes and threw her arms in the air, shaking her head at the rhythm of Avicii's 'Levels', then she accidentally bumped into a body and suddenly opened her eyes.

"Sorry." she apologized before she realized who was the person in front of her.

"Hanna?"

"Sean?"

* * *

 **A/N: Okay, sorry for the little cliffhanger :P Also sorry for the long wait, anyways I hope this 5k+ words chapter could make it up for that :) So, a guest asked in a review if it was possible to see when Hanna and Caleb first met, that's why I decided to make that little flashback... I hope you all liked it :) And AnnaPL suggested to make Sean return, anyway it was already part of my plans, to be honest :P Anyway, he's back in the story and I hope you're excited about that ;) What will happen now? FrenchBenzo, I do want to make an epilogue of this story, but I really don't know how many chapters are left :/ I know where I'm going with this and how I want to end it, but I don't know, everyday new ideas for this story come up to my mind and it makes me want to write more than I had planned xD Laura, I totally love long reviews so don't apologize for that :) I'm so glad you enjoyed the last couple of chapters and I hope you're gonna appreciate this as well. And you were right, Caleb had to do something else to take Hanna's mind away from Melissa, and looks like he did, haha :P So, guys, I didn't forget about Wren and all that storyline —soon we're gonna see some developments about it ;)—, I just thought to give another twist at the story making Caleb officially enter Hanna's world and Sean return. I hope you're gonna be intrigued by all of that :D So... What do you think about the chapter? How will Sean act with Hanna? How Caleb will react when he sees him? Let me know your thoughts :) Thank you for all the reviews, PMs and everything, it really means a lot :) We're close to 400 reviews... Totally crazy! You're awesome, guys! :D I wish you all an amazing Christmas, surround yourself by the people you love and put aside the bad things at least for one day :) And I also wish you a happy New Year :) I hope to hear from you all soon, happy holidays! Love you! xx -Atramea.**


	27. Chapter 27

"Oh my God, babe, I didn't realize it was already five to midnight!" Spencer mumbled as she came back to Toby and Caleb a few minutes later.

She hooked her arm around her boyfriend's shoulders and kissed his cheek as Toby kept her steady, given her drunkness.

"Hey, Spencer, where's Hanna?" Caleb asked her.

"She should be still dancing around there." she replied muttering, pointing toward the huge crowd on the dancefloor.

Caleb sighed deeply and stood up. He hated what he was about to do, but he knew he had to find Hanna. He didn't like the idea of her alone and through a crowd of horny drunk guys, especially when she was drunk as well. Spencer was no longer with her, so he needed to get through the crowd and bring her back.

"I'm gonna find her. We'll be back here before midnight, I promise." he said then, giving Toby a pat on the shoulder.

"No worries, man." Toby replied, giving him a comprehensive smile.

Caleb took a deep breath and slipped into the crowd, bumping into several people. He even had to physically move away a girl who had happily started rubbing her ass against his crotch. He just _hated_ discos.

* * *

"Hanna... It's been a while since I last saw you." Sean told Hanna.

He was speaking really close to her to make sure she would make up what he was saying despite the high volume of the music. Hanna just nodded, feeling the alcohol going around her head.

"Uh... You know, Sydney and I didn't work. I made a mistake thinking that she was better than you for me. I'm sorry for hurting you." he mumbled then.

"It's fine." Hanna muttered, not really aware of everything by then.

Sean smiled.

"So... What are you doing around here?" he began then.

"It's Toby's birthday." Hanna shrugged, still half-dancing.

"Oh, Cavanaugh... Got it. Well, so... How would you feel if we restart going out together sometimes? Wouldn't it be nice? I think we deserve a second chance."

At that, she laughed and slightly pushed him.

"Sean, _you_ cheated on me! I'm with Caleb now." she added then, grinning.

He furrowed his eyebrows.

"Who's Caleb?" he asked then.

* * *

Caleb finally spotted a blonde mane, and the girl also happened to be dressed in Hanna's tight leather black mini-dress. He sighed in relief as he stepped closer to her, then finally took a hold of her arm, gently turning her to him. It was her, thank God.

"Han, it's almost midnight. We need to come back to Toby." he said in her ear, making sure she could hear him despite the extremely loud music.

She linked her arms around his neck and basically threw her body into his, clearly drunk. He swung an arm around her waist to keep her steady, but then he caught sight of the person who was facing Hanna.

Sean Ackard.

The younger guy pulled his eyebrows together seeing the way Hanna was holding on to his father's friend. And then he realized. The Caleb Hanna was talking about was doctor Rivers. He and Hanna were together.

"Doctor Rivers?" he half-shouted then.

"Sean, hi. Sorry, we really need to go." Caleb replied, quickly dragging Hanna away from him and the crowd.

When he came back with her to the place Toby and Spencer —and now several other people— were, they were counting down to midinght. Caleb gently helped Hanna to sit on a barstool before placing himself behind her to keep her steady. He wrapped his arms around her waist as she leaned back against his chest, narrowing her eyes and smiling drunkely. Finally, it was midnight, and everyone was now hugging and yelling at Toby their 'happy birthday's. Caleb waited until most of the people were gone before extending a hand toward the blonde guy, which he shook, smiling.

"Happy birthday, Toby." Caleb told him, still keeping Hanna still with his free arm.

"Thanks, Caleb." he replied.

" _Happy biiiiiiiiiiirthdayyy_!" Hanna sang out, half-laughing.

Toby laughed slightly before leaning in and placing a small kiss on Hanna's forehead.

"Thanks, Han." he told her then, not really sure if she could fully understand.

"I should probably take her home now." Caleb commented then.

"Yeah, man, maybe it's better. I'll leave soon too, given how Spencer's wasted. It was great to meet you anyways." Toby nodded.

"Yeah, so it was for me. I'll see you around." Caleb smiled before finally feeling allowed to leave the party.

He wrapped Hanna's arm around his shoulders and one of his arms went around her back, walking her to the exit of the club. Then, he put her into the passenger seat of his BMW and fastened her seatbelt before closing the door and getting into the driver seat himself. By the time he had started the engine, Hanna was fast asleep.

He had told Ashley he would have take her daughter back home that night, but he didn't think it was the case anymore, so he drove to his boat and gave Ashley a call, telling her that Hanna was staying with him for the night, without even making up an excuse. Ashley, however, didn't ask more, allowing Caleb to keep Hanna with him for the night.

Then, Caleb hopped out of the car and pulled Hanna out too, carrying her bridal style into the boat. He lied her on the bed and then went to check on Charlie, taking him for a very short walk around the dock, just to make him do his needs, before coming back to the boat. Charlie jumped on the couch and put himself to sleep as Caleb approached Hanna on the bed, who was still sleeping, lying in the same position he had left her a few minutes later. He crouched down and gently took her shoes off, putting them under the bed. He then stood up and carefully turned her on the side to unzip her dress, easily peeling it off her body. She wasn't wearing a bra because of the deep cleavage of her dress, so Caleb had to force himself not to create that kind of thoughts in a situation like that. Sighing, he moved away from her and went to the bathroom to take a quick shower. He came back in the main room and didn't even bother himself to put on some underwear, it was too hot and if there was one thing that he truly loved was sleeping completely naked, whether it was because of sex or not. He silently lied down on bed, not even lifting the duvets, and spooned Hanna, resting his hand on her bare belly and burying his face through her hair.

* * *

Caleb woke up in the same position he had fallen asleep.

Hanna was still there next to him, he was still spooning her, but the sun had already risen judging by the light coming into the inside of the boat. He groaned slightly and absent-mindedly tightened his hold around Hanna, not really wanting to get up. She then stretched against his body, squeezing her eyes as she realized she had one of the worst headaches of her life.

"Fucking hell..." she muttered.

Caleb chuckled behind her.

"Good morning to you too." he whispered then, before pressing a kiss on the back of her shoulder.

Moaning slightly, she rolled over so that she was facing Caleb and looked up at him, blinking a couple of times.

"Sorry... Morning." she murmured then, rubbing a hand over her own forehead.

"How are you feeling?"

"Like shit. Wasn't I supposed to sleep at my place, though?"

"You were, yeah. But I couldn't bring you back to your mom given you were drunk as crap." he raised his eyebrows at her.

"Shit..."

"I called her to say you were with me, though. Don't worry."

She sighed and rubbed her temple before looking back up at him.

"I'm sorry, Caleb. I didn't want you to see me like that, I was an idiot." she murmured, probably a little ashamed.

"It's okay."

"No, it's not. I didn't mean to act like a stupid kid craving for alcohol, especially while you were with me."

"Well... At least you had fun. You and Spencer, actually. She was as wasted as you." he shrugged.

Hanna rolled her eyes.

"God, I got drunk at our first public date. I'm an idiot." she muttered then.

He smiled and pulled her into a hug.

"It's not a big deal. Just make sure next time we get drunk together... But in private _and_ with wine." he whispered then.

She got relaxed into his hug, trying not to focus on her huge hangover.

"Not that I'm complaining, but... Why are you naked? Did we do something I don't remember last night?" she giggled then.

He chuckled.

"I will never take advantage of your drunkness... I'm just hot." he replied then.

"Oh, yes... You're _definitely_ hot." Hanna remarked, pulling away from his hug to grin up at him.

He just laughed as she started kissing his neck, but he stopped her before she could go further, grabbing her wrists when they began dangerously moving toward south.

"Wait..." he mumbled.

"What?"

Caleb sighed and sat up in bed before continuing.

"When I came find you last night because you had disappeared through the crowd, you were talking with Sean. You remember that?"

"Sean?" Hanna widened her eyes.

"Yeah. It was right him. He wasn't at Toby's party, but he happened to be in that same pub last night."

Hanna ran a hand through her hair as she tried to remember.

"Ugh... Yeah, maybe you're right, maybe I saw him. I...kinda remember." she mumbled then.

"Do you remember what you talked about?"

"Uh... He told me that he and the bitch he cheated on me with broke up. And then I think he asked me if I wanted to see him again sometimes... Yeah, yeah, that's it." Hanna nodded.

Caleb raised an eyebrow.

"What a douche... You were clearly drunk and everyone could tell it, but he didn't miss the chance to hit on you anyways." he muttered then.

"Caleb... I think I told him I'm dating you." she began again, a worried look into her eyes.

"And you did the right thing."

"What if he tells his dad? Caleb, I don't want you to fight with John—"

Caleb cut her off.

"Hanna, I don't care. We decided to have a public relationship, to stop hiding, so I already knew that Sean or John, like anyone else, would know about us sooner or later. And it's fine. If they don't understand, that's their problem, not mine or yours. We discussed about this too many times... For the nth time, stop worrying about people, Hanna. Just stop."

She stayed silent for a second before asking something.

"Then why did you want to know what Sean and I talked about?"

"Because it wasn't exactly nice seeing you that close to your ex-boyfriend. And you were even drunk."

"Then you can imagine how I felt when you told me you were going to live with your wife again."

He sighed. She had a point.

"Okay, I'm sorry. But I thought we got over that." he mumbled then.

"We did, I forgave you, but... It's not like I can forget it."

Caleb sighed again and reached out for her hand.

"I will always feel shit about that, okay? But, Hanna, look... Last night, I got into a world totally unknown to me. I didn't exactly like it, to be honest, but I was happy to be there, because that's _your_ world. So I will get used to that, because I want to be part of your world too, and I'm willing to accept every side of it. You already made a lot of sacrifices for us, and what I'm doing is not even a sacrifice, so... It's fine. I'm trying with all myself to make things work and I promise I will. And I'm also trying to make up for my mistakes. I'm really trying, Hanna... I want us to work more than anything." he opened up to her.

Hanna sighed and squeezed his hand.

"I know... Sorry if I always bring _that_ up. And I shouldn't have gotten drunk last night, I left you alone in a place in which you were not comfortable at all surrounded by a bunch of idiots..." she murmured then.

"No, don't worry, I was with Toby. He's a nice guy."

Hanna looked up at him and smiled.

"Thanks for coming, by the way. I promise we won't go too often to those kind of places, though. I don't really like them either, after all." she said then.

Caleb laughed.

"You don't have to lie to me, Hanna. I know you like discos, and that's the most normal thing for a girl in her twenties. We'll go there whenever you want, okay? You don't have to worry about me, I'll just be glad to be with you. It's not like we must like the same things. But I'm sure we're both willing to make a few efforts to bear with each other, right?" he said then.

She smiled and nodded.

"Right." she repeated then, agreeing with him.

"Well, I should take you back home now. I don't want your mom to think that I kidnapped you or something." he raised his eyebrows.

Hanna rolled her eyes, but knew he was right.

* * *

Given the weather was pretty nice, Caleb and Hanna decided not to take the car to go to her place. They took Charlie with them and went all together for a long walk. Caleb didn't hesitate to took her by the hand, walking through the streets of the town with Hanna by his side, having nothing to hide anymore. She had Charlie's leash in her free hand, since his free one was busy because he was smoking. Their fingers were tightly interwined and they both were wearing sunglasses. They almost looked like some vip couple, also given how everyone was staring at them as they keep on walking. But it's not like they cared. At some point, though, Hanna stopped.

"Caleb." she mumbled.

"What?" he asked, turning to her confused.

Hanna let go of his hand to slightly pull her sunglasses down, glancing to the other side of the street.

"That's mr Ackard, over there." she mumbled then.

Caleb looked over and spotted John Ackard, but the funny thing was that he was soon joined by his son.

"And that's Sean." Caleb completed.

"Fuck. The last thing I wanted was seeing him, especially after last night." she muttered.

Caleb shrugged.

"It's not a big deal. Let's just go." he said then, throwing his cigarette to the ground and putting it out with his heel before offering his hand back to her.

Hanna hesitated, but when she noticed that both John and Sean had already seen them, she knew she had no escape. She grabbed Caleb's hand tightly and moved forward with him, repeating herself that she had nothing to worry about, glad that Caleb was right next to her.

"Caleb, long time no see." John raised his eyebrows when Caleb and Hanna came closer.

"Hi, John... Sean." Caleb replied, smiling.

"Good morning, mr Ackard. Hi, Sean." Hanna mumbled then, and Caleb gave her hand a squeeze.

Sean stayed silent, studying the couple in front of him, then his dad replied to Hanna's greeting.

"Hi, Hanna. Wow, I had heard some stories about the two of you, but seeing you is a total different thing."

Hanna smiled shyly and Caleb shrugged.

"It's weird, you know. You sure don't expect to see your son's ex-girlfriend hand in hand with one of your friends. To think that I was the one introducing the two of you..." John continued, smiling in a way that Hanna couldn't really interpret.

"Well... Things happen." Caleb said quietly, glancing at Sean.

"But things like this are kind of disgusting, to be honest." the younger guy finally said, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Yeah? And why is that?" Caleb raised an eyebrow.

"Caleb, let's just go." Hanna muttered, but Caleb remained where he was, staring at Sean.

"You're over thirty while she's barely twenty. You're her boss. She was with me and now sleeps with one of my dad's collegues. You're married and you go all around the town holding hands with your younger lover. That's disgusting." Sean continued.

Caleb glanced at John for a second, but noticing he wasn't going to say anything to his son, he automatically felt allowed to do that, instead.

"First of all, act like an adult and show respect, especially toward a woman, who's right here and was also part of your life. Careful with your words... It's not like Hanna 'sleeps' with me, she _is_ with me. True, I'm thirty-two and she's twenty-three, but I really don't see what's the scandalous thing in here. Same goes for the boss thing. We're just a man and a woman, stop. Who cares if we work in the same place? And, just to clarify, my wife and I broke up several months ago, we'll soon be divorced. You know what I think it's actually disgusting instead, son? _Cheating_. On a girl who loved you and just wanted you to be happy. _That_ is disgusting, my friend."

Sean remained silent, not knowing what to say, then Caleb turned to John and continued.

"I hate reproaching someone in front of their parents, especially when I know them, but when they cross a line, I really can't help myself."

John turned to his son and raised an eyebrow at him.

"Oh, John, I guess you didn't know that your son hasn't exactly acted like a good man like you taught him to. Well... Sorry to break the news." Caleb continued.

John glared at Sean as he lowered his gaze, but the man seemed to ignore the comment, then looked from Hanna to Caleb before popping out a question.

"So what about your wife, Caleb? I heard she was pregnant, was it just a gossip then, or what?"

Caleb sighed before replying.

"Melissa left town around a year ago, with another man and my money. I didn't tell anyone. I met Hanna when she was ready away, and we began our relationship months later than then. But she's actually pregnant, which is the reason why is back in town. Clearly the baby's not mine, but her man broke up with her so she came back to me to ask for help, because she has no one else. She's just staying in town until her childbirth, but we're not back together or anything like that."

John took a moment to process everything before turning to Hanna.

"Well... I didn't know why you and Sean broke up, anyway... You seem to have found your way now, Hanna." he said then.

"She sure did. What a coincidence, though, she was with a dentist's son and now with a dentist..." Sean muttered, probably alluding to the fact that Hanna was only looking for money.

"Enough, Sean." John shut him up.

Hanna was about to say something, but Caleb squeezed her hand and gave her a glance, as if he wanted to tell her that Sean wasn't worth a second more of their time.

"Yeah, enough. You're free to think whatever you want, by the way. Have you both a good day." Caleb smiled before walking past them dragging Hanna by their joined hands. "Don't look back, let them stare." he whispered to her as they walked away with Charlie.

Hanna didn't say anything, still processing what had just happened, and the next thing she knew was that they were standing in front of her house.

"Thank you." she finally breathed out, turning around to face him.

Caleb furrowed an eyebrow at her, moving a strand of her hair behind her ear.

"For what?" he asked then.

"You know for what. For the things you told John and Sean. Even if I was just standing there like an idiot, I listened to every single word you said, and... Yeah, thank you."

He just smiled at her as he took Charlie's leash from her hand.

"It's okay. It was nothing." he whispered before quickly pecking her lips.

Hanna smiled at him, then rang the doorbell. A smiley Ashley greeted them.

"Morning, mrs Marin." Caleb smiled politely.

"Hi, guys. Hey, Charlie!" the woman said as she bent down to say hi to the dog.

"Well... I'll see you later?" Caleb asked Hanna.

"Sure." Hanna smiled.

"Caleb, please, come in. Stay awhile, I just made coffee." Ashley said then, standing back up.

"Oh... Okay, sure." he smiled then.

And Hanna smiled even more, glad that at least her mom would just look at them together with a smile.

* * *

 **A/N: Forgive me for taking so long to update, I'm really sorry! Although I had the chapter ready since a little while, I haven't felt very well these last days and I couldn't update... Anyway, here it is now :) I hope you all had a great Christmas and start of the year and I hope you enjoyed the chapter. So, finally Hanna and Caleb had their talk with Sean and John all together... If you wanted to see Caleb's protective side toward Hanna, I hope you were pleased :) However, next chapter will be back to focus on all the Wren thing, something will finally start happening ;) Thank you so much to all of you who reviewed, I hope to keep hearing from you :) — Let's just not talk about 6b, please. My stomach and I are sick and tired of reading and seeing such ridicolous and disgusting things about that. — That's all :) Have a nice Sunday, love you! :) xx -Atramea.**


	28. Chapter 28

A couple of days later, on Sunday, Hanna and Caleb were at the mall. She had told him she needed a new pair of shoes and he had offered himself to come with her, even though now he was slightly regretting his choice. Two hours, and she was still deciding which pair was prettier.

"Uhm... What do you think?" she asked him, looking at her reflection in the mirror as she wore two different shoes.

Caleb sighed, rubbing his hand over his sweaty forehead. It was awfully hot in that freaking mall and, as if it wasn't bad enough, he was also carrying two shopping bags since Hanna had already bought a skirt and a pair of boots.

"I don't know, Han. They both look good, I guess." he muttered then.

Hanna sighed and kept looking at the mirror, studying both shoes. Then, her mobile started ringing from her purse —which was carried by Caleb as well— and she snorted.

"Is that my phone?" she asked.

"Well, I wouldn't put Taylor Swift as my ringtone."

She giggled, shaking her head as she reached out and pulled her phone out of her purse, not recognizing the number on the display.

"Hello?" she picked up, turning back around to look at the mirror once again.

"Uhm... Hi, I'm looking for Lydia Brown. Is that you?" a male voice replied through the speaker.

Hanna froze for a moment before quickly turning around to widen her eyes at Caleb. Lydia Brown was the name they had used to write the email to Wren about the fake casino. Caleb looked at her quizzically and a little worried, then she decided she had to do something.

"Yeah, yeah, that's me. Who am I talking to?" she asked on the phone.

"Hi, I'm Wren Kingston. You sent me an email a little while ago about the opening of a new casino." Wren replied.

"Oh, sure. I remember. I'm glad you contacted me. My team and I would love to have you here for the opening ceremony. You know, we often visit online forums of players and you're like a star around there. We tried to contact just a few of you guys, you know, the best in the milieu." Hanna replied.

That's when Caleb understood that it was Wren. He came closer to Hanna in order to hear more of the phone conversation.

"Well, thank you. Actually, it would be nice for me to be there too. However, I used to visit your town sometimes, and... Let's say that I may have a few enemies around there, so... Is the casino opening right there?" Wren asked then.

Hanna exchanged a quick look with Caleb, who just nodded at her, so she replied with no more hesitation.

"Yes, mr Kingston. It's right here. But I'm sure you're not gonna have any problems, I mean, this kind of events is just for a few people. Are your 'enemies' players or—"

"No, they're not. Maybe you're right, I shouldn't be worried. So... When are you gonna open?" Wren cut her off, now seeming convinced.

A grin escaped from Hanna's lips when she realized their plan was actually working. Caleb, then, mouthed her something which she immediately repeated through the speaker.

"Next Saturday, at eight in the evening."

"Where, exactly?" Wren asked.

"Oh, near the dock. The place will have a nice view on the ocean. I'll make sure to send you the address and any other detail by email." Hanna replied spontaneously before glancing up at Caleb, looking for his approvation.

He quickly nodded, then Wren replied.

"Alright... I'll just call you in a few days to confirm, okay?"

"Excellent." Hanna grinned.

After that, Wren hung up and so did Hanna. She looked up at Caleb and smiled.

"We got the man." she added.

" _You_ got the man. You did a great job."

She laughed slightly.

"I can't wait until this thing is over... Then we can finally take our trip." he continued, smiling.

"And you can move back to your house."

"Whatever, the boat is not that bad."

Then, Hanna sighed and Caleb could immediately sense her sudden change of mood.

"What's wrong?" he asked, cupping one of her cheeks.

"Is it really gonna work? Will Wren come around and accept to take care of his daughter?"

"Well... I really hope so. But if it doesn't, I promise I won't leave you. This is all I can do for Melissa, it's even more than I should have done in the first place. Look... I'm telling you, if Wren actually walks away, I'll just give Melissa some money and find her a place far from here where she can start a life with her daughter. I'll make sure she'll be fine, but far from me. Not before divorcing from her, though, of course. So don't worry about that, okay? It's all coming to an end. I already lost you once for this mess, and whatever happens, I won't let it happen ever again. I promise on my life."

Hanna relaxed into a soft smile and wrapped her arms lightly around Caleb's neck as he lowered his head and pressed a delicate kiss on her lips, looping his arms around the back of her waist.

"Now take both of those pair of shoes. My treat." he whispered then, pushing the tip of his nose up against hers.

Hanna's eyes grew bigger and lit up at that.

"Really?" she asked, raising her eyebrows.

"Really. Don't even tell me how much they cost. Today's a good day." he grinned before giving her another kiss.

"Now that I think, it's actually nice to be with a rich man..." she teased then.

He chuckled and kissed her one last night before letting her escape from his grasp, then he lightly slapped her ass when she bent down to unhook her shoes. And when she turned around to raise an eyebrow at him, he smirked.

"You're lucky that I love you." he added, winking at her.

* * *

After the mall, the rest of the afternoon was spent in Caleb's boat.

Caleb was straddling an half-naked Hanna lying on her stomach to work the knots on her back with one of his amazing back rubs. She had asked him to take the 'post shopping session stress' away from her. When he suddenly decided he could use the help of some balm, so he opened the drawer of his nightstand to take it, he noticed something.

"Shit, I'm out of condoms." he muttered as he pulled the balm out of the drawer.

"You don't need to buy them again." Hanna mumbled from her position as he closed the drawer shut.

"What?" he asked casually as he rubbed some balm over the palms of his own hands.

"Don't waste money on that. I had a talk with my doctor, I made him prescribe me some pill. We'll be fine, no needs to worry from now on."

He stopped whatever he was doing and bit his lip.

"Have we ever...got worried?" he asked hesitantly, not sure about what she meant.

"Caleb, I'm finally on the pill. You should just be happy."

He stayed silent and rubbed her back for another minute, but he could tell he was missing something, so he stopped and sighed.

"Hanna... Is there something you're not telling me?" he breathed out then.

She snorted and turned her neck slightly to look at him, knowing he wasn't going to stop asking.

"It's nothing, just..." she began, but then stopped.

Caleb rolled off her back and went to lie by her side, looking earnestly into her eyes.

"Just... What?" he asked.

Hanna took a deep breath and stared down at her fingers as she tried to explain.

"You know, there were a few times when we did the whole thing without any protection. Like when we were at the studio, or at my place, or... Well, I guess you remember. And, yeah, I let you...finish inside because I knew I was in my... _safe days_ , you know? I mean, I keep my period things and stuff under control, I swear."

Caleb quirked an eyebrow but nodded, now thinking he had probably been a little irresponsible those few times, knowing she wasn't on any contraceptive. Then, Hanna continued.

"And it was fine. But then, well... Last week I realized I was a few days late. And I just... I started freaking out like crazy. Because _safe days_ don't exist, actually. I was an idiot."

Her cheeks had turned into a darker shade of pink, and her gaze was still low. She was clearly embarassed to talk to him about that, but he knew he was involved as much as she was in something like that, if not more. He cupped her cheek and lifted her head in order to make her look at him, then nodded again.

"Don't be embarassed. _I_ was the idiot who didn't think about what he was actually doing." he whispered.

She nodded briefly before continuing.

"Anyway, I did get my period, even if four days later than due. But it scared me, so I decided it was safer to start the pill. I don't want a baby... At least not now."

"Of course you don't." he smiled softly, rubbing her cheek softly.

She sighed, maybe still feeling uncomfortable about the whole thing, so Caleb decided to speak again.

"Look, just because I'm over thirty and my ex-wife is having a baby, it doesn't mean that I want one as well. I mean, like you said, not now. In the future, I probably will, but not now. Hanna, I wasn't trying to get you pregnant. I hope that you know that."

"I know." she replied with decision, looking back up at him.

He nodded slowly, still stroking her cheek in a soothing way, then asked her something.

"Why didn't you tell me you were late?"

"Well... Last week we weren't exactly in a really good place." she muttered, raising her eyebrows slightly.

"Oh... Right."

"Yeah." she murmured awkwardly.

Caleb sighed, looking at how fragile she looked in that moment.

"Look... I know you feel embarassed talking about this stuff, but... I mean, this is about both of us. You have nothing to be ashamed of. You know, maybe _I_ actually do. Anyway... You can talk to me about anything, okay? And... I'm sorry. I mean, you were freaking out over something like that, and who knows what I was doing in the meanwhile. You needed me and I wasn't there for you. I'm really sorry." he whispered then.

She smiled a little, reaching out for his free hand and grabbing it.

"It's okay. It was nothing, in the end." she replied then.

"Yeah, _in the end_. But it could've actually been something. I should have been more careful."

" _We_ should have been more careful. But, well, what is done is done, and thank God we were lucky. And now, we don't have to worry about that anymore, so... Let's just get over that, okay?"

"Yeah, right, but I'm older and I'm the man, I should have—" Caleb began again, but Hanna cut her off.

"Caleb, hey, hey, hey... Stop. I didn't tell you to make you feel guilty. Look... I'm on the pill, we're safe to have sex whenever and wherever we want. And, to be honest, my scare wasn't the only reason why I eventually decided to start the pill."

"What do you mean?" he asked with a small smirk plastered on his face.

"Well..." she began, rolling over so that she was lying on top of him. "I might have liked those times when I...actually felt you."

He pulled his lower lip into his mouth with his teeth as he fought back another grin.

"You know... Maybe I liked them too." he whispered then.

She laughed before slanting her mouth over his, kissing him hard. However, much to his dismay, she pulled away soon.

"Thanks for the shoes." she whispered out of the blue.

"I can't believe you're actually thinking about those stupid shoes now!" he muttered shocked.

She slapped his chest.

"They're not stupid, Caleb!" she laughed then, before lifting herself off him and standing up, stroking Charlie's head when she noticed he was lying right at the feet of the bed.

"Where are you going now?" Caleb whined from the bed.

"To call the Chinese. They do home delivery. We're eating take-away here and then you're driving me back to my place." she replied as she walked to where her purse was, picking one of Caleb's shirts from the couch on her way and slipping in it.

He groaned and lifted himself off bed too.

"Do you really need to go back home? Can't you stay here?" he asked as he approached her.

"Nope, I have to study. Like, a lot."

"Well, can't you do that here?"

She turned to him and gave him a knowing look as she put her phone near her ear, calling the restaurant. As she talked into the speaker, he wrapped his arms around her waist from behind and kissed the top of her head. When she hung up, they were still like that, and Hanna simply leaned back into him.

"I'm gonna finish my exams so I can graduate, we're gonna make Wren reason, you're gonna divorce, Melissa's gonna leave... Everything's gonna go to its own place." she sighed then.

"And then I'm gonna give you the best holiday ever. It will all be worth it, I promise."

"I can't wait." she smiled as he placed another kiss on her cheek.

"Yeah, tell me about it. I foresee lots of sex..." he whispered into her ear then, slightly nibbling at her earlobe, and she slapped his arm, distangling herself from his grasp.

After eating their Chinese take-away, Caleb drove Hanna home as promised. During the ride, they talked about what they would say to Wren the following Saturday. She seemed intrigued to finally be a part of what sounded like some secret mission, and he was simply happy that they were getting closer to their goal. He had had enough of that whole thing.

* * *

They didn't see each other for a few days after then, since Hanna wanted to focus on her exam and Caleb was clearly a distraction to her. Yeah, a nice one — _the best one_ , actually—, but still a distraction. He understood, clearly not wanting to hinder her graduation, so he just called her every night before going to bed, until Thursday, which was the day of Hanna's exam. That day, he showed up in front of her college with Charlie, waiting for her to get out. He leaned by his car and waited almost half an hour before she finally exited the building, and a huge grin appeared on her lips as soon as she saw him. Before he knew it, she had ran to him and her arms were wrapped around his neck.

"Hi!" she squeaked as she hold on to him.

"Hey, you... So, how did it go?" he asked, pulling away slightly to look into her eyes.

"I passed it!" she said happily before quickly kissing his lips.

"Yeah?"

"Yup. It was the hardest exam of the whole course, but I made it. Now I just need to pass two exams and then I'll finally graduate... I can't believe it." she smiled brightly.

"You're amazing, I knew you would made it." he grinned.

She smiled again before raising an eyebrow at him.

"What are you doing here, though?" she asked.

"I just wanted to see you. Do you mind if I show up without telling you?"

"No, not at all. I like surprises." she smiled.

"Well, then I'll make sure to surprise you more often."

She laughed slightly before kissing him again, this time longer.

"I missed you these days..." she mumbled then, drowning into his hug.

"You did?" he chuckled as he ran his hand down her back.

"Yeah."

"Well... I missed you too. That's why I think we should spend some time together now... This exam stole too much time to us, didn't it?"

Hanna laughed and pulled away to smile widely at him.

"What's the first stop?" she asked.

"Well... Where would you like to go? You deserve an award for your exam, so... Choose."

A huge grin appeared on Hanna's face. He was the best.

"As long as we don't go to the mall once again." he teased then, slightly rolling his eyes.

She just laughed at that. She was starting to absolutely love their days together, especially now that they didn't have to hide anymore. She knew he would have taken her to the mall anyways if she had really wanted to, but she didn't really. Instead, she eventually decided for a simple walk through the park, happy just to walk hand in hand with him, without worrying about Saturday.

Actually, she couldn't wait for Saturday.

* * *

 **A/N: Hi :) So, this was pretty much just a filler to introduce the big things that are coming up next. Yes, next chapter Wren will finally come back in town and Caleb will talk to him about Melissa and everything ;) Anyway, even if this was just a filler, I wanted to get into Hanna and Caleb's relationship a little deeper. I also kinda needed them to have that serious talk, and I bet you weren't expecting Hanna's pregnancy scare because I never mentioned it... And I didn't mean to, so you would be just as surprised as Caleb was :P I hope you enjoyed it as well as the rest of the chapter. I apologize for being late, but I had some serious writer block last week that I just couldn't write anything. Anyways, we're getting closer to the end of this story too, but don't worry, I have everything planned for a —hopefully— good end, and I also have some other ideas for new Haleb stories in store for you. To be honest, I'm pretty happy about the way this one story came out, because it was born as an experiment but the way you reacted to it with all of your positive feedback made it so much more, and it became also a true pleasure for me to write it, while I was unsure myself at first. But, hey, it's not over yet :) Oh, I'm also glad you seemed to appreciate the Caleb/Sean showdown from last chapter :D Thank you as always for reading and reviewing, each one of your words really means a lot to me. Get ready for Wren's return next chapter... How will he react when he realizes Caleb was behind all of this? How will Melissa react? Also, who can't wait for Haleb's trip when all of this stuff is finally over? Haha :P I hope you'll have a nice weekend :) Love you! xx -Atramea.**


	29. Chapter 29

One thing was sure: Wren Kingston was one classy man.

It was finally Saturday night and Hanna was sitting on one of the benches near the railing of the dock, watching as he came closer and closer to her. Caleb had shown her a picture of him, and Hanna had now recognized him. Caleb was a few feet away, making sure he could see everything without being seen. He had told Hanna he would show up at some point, and she was glad about that. Clearly, knowing that he was right behind the corner made her feel someway safer. But she also knew that if Wren had been a dangerous man, Caleb would have never let him being that close to her, so she was feeling okay with the whole thing.

When Wren was close enough, Hanna stood up with a charming smile and held her hand out to him.

"Wren Kingston, I finally have the pleasure." she began.

He was wearing a black tux, his hair looked longer than the picture she had seen of him, and he had a perfectly well-finished beard. He smiled back at her and shook her hand.

"Lydia Brown, I assume?" he asked.

"That's me. Nice to meet you."

"It's all my pleasure."

Only then, Wren released Hanna's hand and looked around himself.

"So... Where's the place?" he asked then, looking slightly confused.

"Don't worry, mr Kingston. We'll get there. It's still early, I figured we could use a walk to talk a little."

"I don't understand, it's not early. Where's everyone? This is the address you sent me, the place should be here. Plus, why there's absolutely no advertising online or anywhere else about this casino or anyone talking about it?"

"Mr Kingston, don't be nervous. Have a seat, so I can explain everything." Hanna replied, trying to stay calm.

Wren looked suspicious by now. He was starting to wonder who the girl in front of him actually was. However, he eventually took a seat on the bench next to Hanna.

"I remember when we spoke on the phone. You told me you had some enemies around here, right?" she began.

"Who are you?" Wren asked in reply.

Hanna pursed her lips, not really knowing what to say.

"There's no casino, right? Who's behind all of this?" he asked again, slightly raising his voice.

Hanna spotted Caleb walking to them and decided she had to stay silent.

"Wren." Caleb breathed out.

As soon as Wren turned around, he jumped off the bench and began backing far from him. Caleb just raised his arms.

"Man, relax. Don't be coward. If I had really wanted to give you to the police for what you did, I would've already done it. I'm here just to talk, okay?" he said then.

Wren stopped and looked from him to Hanna, then back to him.

"What do you want from me?" he asked then.

Caleb tilted his head to the side, raising his eyebrows.

"Well... There would be a lot of things I could want from you. However, I assume you already spent all my money in poker, casinos and stuff, but, don't worry, the reason you're here is not my money." he continued.

"Look, man, I don't know where Melissa is. We split up, I have no idea about where she could be."

"She's here."

Wren looked surprised to hear that.

"Is she..." he began then, and Caleb continued for him.

"Still pregnant? Yes, she is."

Wren froze.

"What do you want from me?" he asked again.

Caleb sighed and offered a hand to Hanna to help her up before replying.

"Look... She's Hanna Marin, my girlfriend. We were together when Melissa came to knock on my door, asking for help because you had dumped her. I wanted to help her, but I could have never accepted to father her child, of course. However, the fact that I helped her in the first place caused trouble in my relationship with Hanna. We eventually figured it all out, and I'm not blaming you for what happened, okay? But... Seriously? She's carrying your child, man. How could you just leave them like that?"

"I can't be a father." Wren shook his head.

"Why? Because you want to keep playing and wasting money in that for the rest of your life? Look... I understand if you don't want to be with Melissa anymore. But your daughter doesn't have any fault in that. Take your responsabilities. Think about her. Why does she have to grow up without a father, huh? How will you be able to keep going with your life knowing that she's somewhere wondering what her father's face looks like?"

"It's a girl?" Wren gulped.

"Yeah. Melissa risked to lose her, though. She had a placental abruption a few weeks ago." Caleb informed him.

"Are they both okay now?" Wren asked with a tip of concern into his eyes.

Caleb nodded.

"She's staying at my place. I think that you should go visit her, now that you're here." he added.

Wren stayed silent for a few seconds before asking him something else.

"Why are you doing this?"

"I lost both my parents when I was sixteen. No kid should ever grow up without even just one of their parents. You're here, alive... It wouldn't be fair for her if you decided not to be part of her life. I don't know if you've ever loved Melissa, but... We're talking about your daughter here. She's just an innocent baby. Think about it." Caleb told him.

Hanna squeezed his hand at that. She hated seeing him hurt whenever had to bring up his parents.

"Wren, you came over here, you... You traveled for miles and miles just because you thought you were going to play. Don't you think that coming all the way here for your own daughter would make more sense, instead?" she spoke then, still holding Caleb's hand.

"You're free to leave, if you want. We're not pushing you into anything, and you have my word that I'm not telling anything to the police whatever decision you make, but... I think you shouldn't just walk away." Caleb finished.

Wren sighed and then pursed his lips, scratching the back of his neck.

"Fine... Take me to her." he finally breathed out.

* * *

The ride to Caleb's house was totally silent. Caleb was driving, Hanna was sitting in the passenger seat and Wren was in the back. He hadn't asked any more questions about Melissa or the baby, now he just looked like he was freaking out.

They finally got there and, once inside, Hanna took a seat on the couch of the living room.

"I'll just stay here." she whispered to Caleb, as he nodded and rubbed her cheek before leading Wren up to the guestroom where Melissa was.

Ten minutes later, Caleb came back downstairs and found Hanna doing small talk with Lucy. He smiled and sat next to her.

"So?" Hanna asked.

Caleb shrugged, pouring himself a glass of bourbon.

"I just had to make sure they weren't going to start a huge fight in my own house, but... I'm not really interested in listening their whole conversation." he said then, taking a sip from the glass.

"I'm going to cook for Melissa, mr Rivers. Can I get you anything?" Lucy asked politely, standing up from her seat.

"No, Lucy. Thank you. Baby, you want anything?" he replied, eventually turning to Hanna.

"No, thanks." Hanna replied smiling at him, then at Lucy and then at Caleb again.

"You did a great job." he told her as Lucy walked away.

"I did nothing." she shrugged.

"You did _nothing_? Han, you've been thrown in the middle of this when I just deserved to be slapped, you helped me contact Wren and he's finally here now. I mean... Do you think this is _nothing_?"

She shrugged again, even though there was a small smile on her lips.

"Well, to me, this is so much more than nothing." Caleb said then, placing his glass back on the coffee table.

"You're welcome, then." she replied, looking up at him through her thick eyelashes.

He smiled lovingly at her before bringing his head at her level, placing a gentle kiss on her lips. She sighed when he pulled away, stroking one of his cheeks.

"Are you tired? Do you want me to drive you home?" he asked softly.

She shook her head.

"I'm fine. Plus, now I want to know how this story ends. You know I'm curious." she said then, making him slightly laugh.

"Alright." he murmured then, casually wrapping an arm around her shoulders and pulling her against his chest.

In the end, Lucy cooked for Wren too, who was still upstairs with Melissa. And eventually, Hanna and Caleb ate something too, even though Caleb insisted to cook himself for them, telling Lucy she could go get some rest.

* * *

Two hours had passed since they got there with Wren, and the couple was still downstairs, in the living room, cuddling on the couch while watching TV.

"Maybe we should go check if everything's okay up there." Hanna said casually.

"Nah, don't worry. I guess they just have a lot to talk about, you know. They're not really good people, yeah, but I know they wouldn't hurt each other... Not physically, at least." he replied, stroking her shoulder.

"Uhm... Okay."

"Are you sure you don't wanna go home?"

"Yeah, I wanna stay with you."

He smiled down at her before pressing a kiss on her forehead.

Finally, after another half an hour, Wren came downstairs. Hanna was almost asleep, but when Caleb shifted slightly in attempt to get up trying not to disturb her, she soon came back to her senses, but decided to stay on the couch and leave some privacy to the two men.

"Thanks for the dinner." Wren mumbled awkwardly.

Caleb just nodded before speaking.

"How did it go with her?"

"Uhm... She let me see the prints of her ultrasounds, and... We talked a lot, and... I think I'll stay around for awhile, trying to figure out what to do. I still haven't decided, but... I guess I need to stick around for a little to understand what I really want." Wren shrugged.

Caleb nodded slowly.

"I'm glad to hear that." he said then.

"I'll take a room in a hotel somewhere in town, then we'll see."

"Alright. Well, I'm not living here at the moment, but you can come whenever you want. Lucy will be here, she'll let you in."

"Good. So... Thanks."

"I didn't do any of this for you or for Melissa. I did it just for the baby. I don't need you to thank me. However, I hope you're gonna take the right decision, eventually."

Wren nodded, then he awkwardly held his hand out to Caleb. Hanna kind of held her breath at that as she looked at the two men from her seat. It didn't happen everyday that your ex wife's lover who stole a lot of your money offered his hand for you to shake, despite how things had changed from then, she thought. However Caleb, being the gentleman he was, after a second, just shook Wren's hand firmly. They exchanged one last look before Wren finally walked out of the door.

"So he's staying?" Hanna asked once Wren was gone.

"Apparently." Caleb shrugged in response.

"What if he's leaving, instead?"

"I don't think he is, anyway... In that case, screw him. I mean, I hope he'll eventually choose to stay with the baby, sure, but... I've had definitely enough of this big mess, this is my last shot. I told you... If it works, good, but if not, well, Melissa will have to figure it all out on her own, I'll just give her a financial help. Either way, this is the end... And you're my start." he eventually grinned, climbing back on the couch next to her and attacking her lips.

"I like the sound of it." she grinned against his lips.

"Now... Can you come to the boat with me for some wine before I drive you back home?" he mumbled between kisses.

"For some _wine_?" she giggled.

"C'mon, Charlie wants to say hi too..."

"He sure does." Hanna laughed as he placed a kiss against her neck.

Caleb pulled away pouting at her like a child.

"Okay, let's go have some _wine_." she said then, rolling her eyes but with a slight grin on her face.

* * *

 **A/N: Hi guys :) I'm sorry for taking this long to update :( Anyway I hope the chapter wasn't bad, finally Wren came back and seems like he's going to stay around for a while. So, I'm planning to do a little flashforward and start next chapter a few months later than now, since I'm taking this story to its end... I think there's still a couple of chapters left and then the epilogue. But I promise you're gonna like the ending since I've already decided where to take things :) I'm glad you liked last chapter and I'm so thankful for all of your reviews, the number of the comments you all left here compared to the number of the chapters of this story is absolutely impressive, I'm really really happy about this result :) Anyway, as I said last time, when this story is over I'm gonna start a new Haleb AU story, and I'm also working to a long one-shot trying to deal with the huge, absolute shit going on in 6b** **(I guess there's no need for me to tell you how pissed I am about that, I'll just say that I want the** ** _real_** **Caleb Rivers back because the one I'm seeing throughout these episodes is just _not_ him. The writers have made choices totally, utterly senseless —and the number of viewers for this part of the season speaks for itself— so I'm not gonna say anything else). However, I'm thinking about waiting for the upcoming Haleb flashback before publishing this one-shot, just to figure something out — hopefully. So, I'm looking forward to reading your opinions in the reviews, and if there's something you want to see in here before this story ends, you can tell me in your reviews so I can try to put that in these last chapters :) As always, thank you all! Love you guys! xx -Atramea.**


	30. Chapter 30

**_Four months later..._**

"She's the second from the left, third row." Caleb whispered to Hanna, pointing his index finger against the glass of the hospital nursery.

"Oh my God, she's so tiny..." Hanna replied, smiling as she looked at the tiny baby girl behind the glass, dressed in a cute pink onesie.

"So... Do you like how they named her?"

"Yeah, I do. To be honest, I've always liked the name Eliza."

"Well... You should choose another one for when we have a baby ourselves, though. I mean, after everything that happened, I'm not naming my own baby like Melissa's."

Hanna laughed slightly, hugging Caleb's arm.

"Oh... Are we seriously having baby talk?" she teased, looking up at him and trying not to melt because he had just pictured her as the mom of his baby.

He laughed too, pressing a kiss against her hair.

"Just kidding. You know I want you all for myself, especially now that we can finally move on from all of this. Then, in the future, we'll see." he whispered then, pressing one final kiss to the top of her head before pulling away and sliding his fingers in between hers.

She smiled up at him before they both focused back on the baby.

"How is Melissa?" she asked casually.

"When I went to visit her earlier this morning, she was fast asleep. Wren told me she had quite a long and tiring labor, seems like baby Eliza took all night to come to the world. But I guess she's fine." he replied with a slight shrug.

"Maybe we should stop by her room before leaving."

He turned to her, still holding her hand.

"Are you sure? I asked if you want to come here today because I figured you would want to see the baby, but... You don't need to see Melissa as well." he said then.

"Oh, c'mon, Caleb. She seems to have softened up since Wren is back, plus... I just want to give her and Wren my congratulations on their baby, it's not like I'm bringing her flowers or something."

"Okay, well... If that's what you want, fine." he shrugged slightly.

* * *

Minutes later, Caleb was knocking softly on the door Melissa's hospital room, his free hand holding Hanna's. Melissa's still weak voice allowed them in and when they stepped in, Hanna was pretty sure she caught a glimpse of Melissa's hand in Wren's, but as soon as she and Caleb were in, they pulled away.

"Hi." Wren smiled slightly, standing up from his seat near the bed.

"Hey." Hanna and Caleb replied simultaneously.

"I went to see Eliza, she's really beautiful." the blonde added then.

"Thanks." Wren smiled.

"Well... I just came to give you both my congratulations." Hanna continued, moving her gaze to Melissa.

Caleb almost couldn't believe his eyes when he saw Melissa shoot Hanna a smile. And it looked like a genuine smile, not like Melissa's usual devious smirks.

"Thank you, Hanna." the newly mom added then.

"Oh, Caleb... Melissa and I took a decision. As soon as she gets discharged, we'll leave for Chicago together. We'll try to be a family." Wren said then.

Caleb looked at him and nodded.

"I'm glad. You took the right decision." he added, motioning a small smile.

"Yeah... Thank you so much, man. I know you did it all for Eliza, but... If I have this chance right now is because of you. I _need_ to thank you. Thank you for looking after Melissa despite everything, for giving her a place to stay, for making me come back in town. I know we can't be friends, of course, but... I want you to know that you have all my gratitude, from man to man. And thank you too, Hanna. Seriously." Wren continued.

Hanna just smiled at him, while Caleb leaned forward and gave him a slight pat on the forearm.

"It's okay. Good luck, then." Caleb said then.

"Thank you." Wren nodded.

"Thank you." Melissa echoed from the bed.

Right then, a nurse entered the room carrying baby Eliza.

"Time to eat." she smiled.

Huge smiles appeared on both Wren's and Melissa's faces, then Caleb wrapped his arm around Hanna's shoulders.

"That's our cue." he smiled down at her, so the two made their way out of the room and then the hospital.

* * *

"What about Lucy? Is she gone?" Hanna asked as Caleb opened the front door of his house.

"Uh, yeah. She left the day after Melissa was moved to the hospital."

"She was a nice girl."

"Yeah, she was. Well, I guess she's happy now, given how much I paid her." he chuckled as he closed the front door behind their backs.

"Probably. So now you're gonna have to bring all of your stuff back here from the boat?"

"Yup. But it's not like I took my whole closet there. I'm not a woman, you know." he smirked.

"Whatever." she rolled her eyes at him.

He stepped closer to her and casually wrapped his arms around her waist, looking down at her with a sudden spark into his eyes. She wrapped her arms around his neck as well, raising an eyebrow at him as a small smile curved her lips slightly upward.

"What are you thinking about?" she asked in a whisper, playing with the short hair at his nape.

Caleb diverted his eyes to the ceiling, pretending to be thinking as he pursed his lips.

"Mmm... Well, let's see... I'm thinking that... I finally have my own house back without anyone in... Except for my hot girlfriend..." he said then, before lowering his head to start nibbling at her neck.

She giggled at the familiar feeling, slightly throwing her head back. Then she felt his hands cup her ass and she took the opportunity to jump into his arms, looping her legs around his waist. He pulled away from her neck and grinned up at her.

"What about you, girl? What are you thinking about?" he asked then.

She pretended to be thinking just like him a few moments earlier before giving him her answer.

"I'm thinking that the bed of your boat is comfortable, yeah, but... I _totally_ miss the one of your master bedroom."

He laughed slightly before leaning in and trapping her lips in between his, immediately sliding his tongue into her mouth as he squeezed her ass. The moan Hanna let out into his mouth came straight to his crotch, making him feel a tingle which did nothing but remind him that he didn't want to waste any time. That's why he opened an eye and started walking toward the stairs, carrying Hanna with him as their tongues kept fighting between their mouths.

In less than a minute they reached the master bedroom and Caleb threw his and Hanna's bodies on the mattress, climbing on top of her and refusing to let go of her lips. Her legs were still wrapped around his waist, pushing their centers together, and her hands were tugging at his hair. His hands traveled up her legs, stroking her thighs and slipping further underneath her black skirt, which was one of his favorites. Their kiss had become totally messy by now, hard, wet, their tongues tangled together barely let them breathe. Hanna gave up first, pulling away from his mouth and gasping for air as he moved his lips down to her jawline and then her neck, kissing, sucking, biting, licking her skin. He suddenly pulled away, kneeling on the mattress, and pulled her skirt down her legs, taking it off once it was at her ankles. Then he stood up and proceeded to unbutton her blouse, until he was admiring a sexy black lacy underwear set.

"So beautiful..." he whispered, biting his lip as he felt his lower half naturally react to the sight.

Hanna smiled at him as he helped her up to slide the blouse off her shoulders for good, throwing it somewhere in the room like he had done with her skirt. She quickly unbuckled his belt, then eagerly pulled the hem of his black tee upward, finally removing it with Caleb's help. When it was gone, she rolled him over so that she was on top of him, straddling him, and bent down to suck on his neck, intentioned to leave her mark on his skin, just next to his Adam's apple. He groaned and closed his eyes, settling his open hands on her bare thighs as she kept sucking. When she was finally happy of the result, she pulled away and kept kissing her way down his chest, purposelly stopping on his right nipple, tracing it with the tip of her tongue. At that, he squeezed his eyes tightly and buried his fingernails into the flesh of her thighs. Hanna then went lower, drawing a trail of open-mouthed kisses down his hard abs. Then, she lifted herself off the bed only to kneel down in between Caleb's legs, quickly unzipping his jeans and pulling them down to his ankles before pulling his boxers down as well. But he suddenly sat up at that, before standing up on the floor and offering a hand to her to help her up. She looked up at him, slightly confused.

"You never have to kneel down for me. Never. Okay?" he said then, surprisingly serious for being a naked man with an obvious arousal on display.

Those words, however, totally melted her. She just nodded before sitting back on the bed and he smiled at her as he positioned himself standing in between her legs.

"Much better, isn't it?" he whispered, cupping her face as she closed a delicate fist around his member.

She nodded again before resting her hand at the base of his length, then Caleb moved one of his hands behind her back, blindly unclasping her bra. Hanna took it off and threw it away before returning to focus completely on him. Slowly and shyly, she moved her face closer and circled the tip of his cock with her lips. Caleb took in a sharp breath, closing his eyes for a moment before opening them again to look down at her. He brought his hands on either side of her face, one stroking her cheek and the other occasionally moving some loose strands of her hair back. She pulled away and then took him in her mouth again, each time going a little deeper, setting a slow but rhythmical pace. He could feel her tongue swirl around him as she moved her head back and forth, the warmth of her mouth making him discover new amazing ways of pleasure. He grunted and tilted his head back slightly, closing his eyes to completely focus on the feeling of Hanna's mouth around him, leaving out all the rest. The thought of thrusting himself down her throat crossed his mind for a split second, but he immediately shook it off. Anyway, he forced himself to open his eyes again at some point, looking down at her and following the movements of her pink lips. She made eye-contact with him, suddenly feeling self-conscious, wondering if she was doing something wrong, but before she could think any further, he smiled down at her reassuringly.

"Just like that, baby... Keep going, it feels amazing..." he added then.

She resumed the pace she had set before as he rested one of his hands on her nape, accompanying her head, and moved the other down her body, groping at her breast. He brushed his thumb against her nipple, feeling it getting harder under his touch, then he rolled it in between thumb and index, and Hanna let out a soft moan around him. At that, Caleb felt himself throb and decided it was enough, otherwise he would have been done shortly after, and it was way too early. He left his grasp on her breast and cupped her chin, gently encouraging her to pull away. She left her grasp around his member and blinked up at him.

"My turn." he grinned before kneeling down himself and sliding her lacy panties down.

She shot him a smile before lying on the bed, closing her eyes and sighing in anticipation knowing what was coming next. In fact, he spreaded her legs and positioned himself in between them, letting out a short moan in approval when he realized she was already wet for him. Then, he opened her lower lips with his fingers and buried his face against her center, starting with gentle kisses before licking her. Hanna startled, arching her back and gripping the sheets at her sides into her fists. Caleb then proceeded to push his tongue inside of her, working on her clit with his fingers. She couldn't hold herself back when she brought both of her hands through his hair, pushing his head harder against her cunt, wondering if he was actually managing to breathe like that.

"C-Caleb..." she mumbled at some point.

He reemerged from between her legs and looked up at her, licking his lips.

"I... I want to come when... When you're inside of me..." she whispered breathlessly.

He smiled and nodded briefly, standing up. He kicked his shoes and pants off since they were still hanging at his ankles and covered Hanna's body with his once again. He reached out and pulled a pillow closer, gently settling it under her head. Then he kissed her, hard, searching for her hands and interlocking them with his as they let their tongues explore each other's mouths once again. At some point, though, she let go of his hands to stroke his back until her hands were tangled through his hair, so he moved his own hands down her sides, enjoying the softness of her sides before gripping her hips and encouraging her to lift them for him. She did so, still kissing him, then opened her legs a little more so that he could settle himself in between them. Only then, he broke their fiery kiss and looked down at her, panting. He was hard and thick, completely ready for her, and he knew she was soaking wet and ready for him as well. She also looked flushed and disheveled, her eyes were narrowed and her lips slightly parted, and he found it all extremely cute. They just stared at each other for a long moment before he sank his mouth back on hers, sliding his cock in between her lower lips in the meanwhile.

This kiss wasn't as long as the previous, because as soon as Hanna felt Caleb filling her, she had to pull away and gasp loudly. He let out a soft grunt too, staying still for a moment as her inner warmth surrounded his cock. Then, he rested his head next to hers and turned it slightly, kissing her cheek tenderly as he began moving again, slowly, stroking her thighs. She moaned as he went on, thrust by thrust, burying her fingernails into the flesh of his toned back and biting down on her bottom lip. The fact that he was sighing and grunting right into her ear every time he pushed himself in only made it all sexier to her.

"Shit, Hanna... You feel so fucking good..." he muttered at some point — he would never get tired to tell her that.

She crossed her legs around his hips and pulled him closer as he slightly sped up the pace.

"Fuck..." she mumbled when one of his hands came to the surface to play with one of her nipples.

She desperately tugged at his hair, raising her hips so that he could hit her deeper, and Caleb suddenly went faster, making her twist beneath him.

"Baby, I'm close..." he grunted, moving his hips with no more coordination.

"Me too..." she sighed.

He was relieved to hear that because he knew he couldn't keep going much longer.

Then, after one deeper thrust, Caleb's body froze and his muscles remained completely still for a moment. Hanna was taken away from an intense orgasm which shook her whole body. She moaned Caleb's name, rolling her eyes to the back of her head as her inner walls started clenching and pulsating around his member. He was right on the edge, and her orgasm did nothing but make him reach his peak, finally allowing him to release all of himself inside of her. His body came back to his senses a second later, when a loud moan escaped from his lips. His head fell on her shoulder as he kept throbbing inside her perfect body, both breathing heavily and still holding each other.

He rolled off her a minute later, lying on his back next to her on the mattress, letting out a long breath through his nose. Then he looked over at her and immediately smiled at the sight. She had her eyes closed, her cheeks were of a dark shade of pink, a small smile was curving her lips slightly upward and her hair was a total mess. But she still looked absolutely gorgeous to him. He reached out to touch her face, running a finger down her cheek, so she opened her eyes and looked back at him.

"I love you so much." she whispered then, still smiling softly.

"Come here." he whispered, grinning at her while pulling her to him.

He sat up for a moment only to pull the blankets over their naked bodies before leaning back down and letting Hanna adjust against his chest.

"I love you too." he whispered then, kissing the top of her head as she swung a leg over his and pressed her chest against his, finally resting her head on his shoulder.

"Well... That was intense..." she commented then, listening to his heartbeat just under her ear.

"Definitely." he chuckled, running his hand up and down her bare back.

"It's just four in the afternoon and we've already ended up in bed, though." she mumbled after giving a quick glance to the alarm on his nightstand.

He laughed before replying.

"I'm pretty sure we end up in bed at whatever hour of the day, Han. We don't really care whether outside is dark or not to do some kind of things, do we?"

She just sighed at that, knowing he was right.

"Do you know this is where we made love for the first time?" she asked after a minute.

"Well, technically, it started against the wall of the hallway, but... How could I forget?"

"I can't believe it's already been six months from that day."

He smiled at that.

"Yeah, me neither. It's half a year... And you're just as beautiful as half a year ago, if not more." he replied then.

She lifted her head for a moment to grin up at him.

"You know you will have to say it even when we're a married couple in their seventies? Well, actually I'll be in my seventies and you'll be in your eighties, but still..." she said then.

He laughed loudly before pressing another sweet kiss through her hair.

"I'll make sure to remind you every moment, then." he assured.

"Speaking of which, your birthday's next week... You're turning thirty-three, huh?"

"And you enjoy to remind me that I'm growing old, huh?"

"Well, it's not negative. I mean, think about wine... The older it is, the better tastes. And you? The older you get, the sexier you become."

He laughed again, lifting her chin with his pointer finger before giving her a hard kiss.

"What about you? You're graduating in two weeks, missy." he whispered then, joining their hands and interlacing their fingers together.

"Yeah, so it seems..." she sighed, playing with his fingers.

"I'm very proud of you, you know that?" he asked, pressing a kiss on her forehead.

"Thanks." she smiled up at him.

"No, I'm serious. Despite everything that happened in your life throughout the last year, you managed to never lose your concentration. And in the meanwhile, you were also working at the studio. It's impressive. You're awesome."

"Well... I would do it all again, I would live every single mess again if it means that I would be here with you, in the end."

He pulled her other leg to him so that her whole body was fully pressed against his, lying chest by chest, then took her face in between his hands and gave her another deep kiss.

"You know what? You're not awesome... You're _perfect_." he whispered then, causing her to smile widely.

* * *

 **A/N: Hi everyone :) Yup, finally Melissa's baby is born so she can officially leave the fuck off as you all want haha :P Seriously though, I hope the chapter was okay. I figured Caleb and Hanna would give Melissa, Wren and their daughter a visit, after everything. But that's it. Aaaand I thought it'd be nice to add some smut, I felt like the last time I gave you some was too long ago, so here you go ;) I took inspiration from the review by the lovely princessveronica722, who suggested Haleb should have some good sex to celebrate the fact that Caleb finally got his house back haha ;) I hope you all appreciated! Next chapter is Caleb's birthday, then after that there's another one with Hanna graduating and then the epilogue :( But again, I'm writing some other Haleb stuff, so don't be sad :) Oh, about that, in my new AU Hanna and Caleb are gonna be two bartenders who find themselves working together in the same place, spending a lot of time with each other. They're gonna be pretty different from each other, he'll be a guy who goes to college and needs money to pay for his new place and his rents while she'll be an independent girl who likes partying and stuff, but I promise you're gonna like it :) There will also be some Tyshley references here and there, I'm having fun putting them into the chapters, haha :D However, let me know if you like this idea! So... AnnaPL, I'm gonna bring Hanna's dad back before this story ends, so I'm taking your suggestion as well :D Anyway, I'm very grateful for every single one of you guys reading, reviewing or whatever. You're always so nice to me and I want you to know that I really appreciate everything, always :) Now, if you want to let me know what you think of this chapter, I'd be really happy :) I hope you're gonna have a great weekend and, I know it's been a tough time, but remember to never lose your love for Haleb :) Love you guys! xx -Atramea.**


	31. Chapter 31

Next Sunday, Hanna parked her car in Caleb's driveway with a huge smile on her face. It was ten in the morning, which meant he was already up for sure, and even though she had called him at midnight 'o clock the previous night to be the very first one to wish him happy birthday, now she obviously wanted to give her wishes in person.

She unfastened her seatbelt and turned to the passenger seat where, next to her purse, she had a cute small package carefully wrapped in a dark blue paper with a white silk ribbon. She was pretty nervous about the present. She had spent the whole week thinking and going around shops with her friends, dragging Toby along with them to have some male opinion, to choose what to buy for Caleb. In the end, she had been happy about the final decision, but she was still nervous about what he would think about it, despite he had told her she didn't have to buy him anything. Sure, she was going to give him some good birthday sex as well, but she wanted to surprise him with much more than just her body.

Pursing her lips, she grabbed her purse and then Caleb's present before finally opening her door and hopping off the car. She put on a big smile as she went to ring the doorbell, eager to hug and kiss him happy birthday. He opened the door soon, appearing wearing just a pair of sweatpants and still with bed hair, but looking hot as usual. As soon as he saw Hanna, he grinned.

"Happy birthday, babe!" she exclaimed, grinning back.

"Thank you." he replied before pulling her in for a kiss.

He wrapped one of his arms around her lower back as he pushed his lips against hers. Their tongues only touched once before she pulled away — she knew that if they were going to start, they wouldn't have finished anytime soon. She stepped inside as he closed the front door behind her back, saying hi to Charlie when he came up to her from somewhere in the house. Then, she looked back up at Caleb and handed him the pack.

"This is for you." she smiled, biting her lip.

"Baby, I told you, you didn't have to buy me anything." he rolled his eyes, although he was half-smiling.

"Oh, shut up. It's your first birthday since we're together, of course I needed to give you my present."

He sighed and shook his head, but he was clearly happy.

"Do I need to open it now?" he asked then.

She nodded excitedly, raising her eyebrows. They both took a seat on the couch, and Charlie jumped to lie next to Hanna as well, so she began stroking his fur as Caleb unwrapped his present. When the ribbon and the paper were gone, he found himself holding a small white box. He shot her a smirk before carefully lifting the lid. Inside the box, there was a classy white gold watch, and at either side of it there were two pure silver cufflinks.

"Oh my God, Hanna..." he murmured, staring at his present.

"What? You don't like them? Shit, I knew I had to—" she began, worried, but he cut her off.

"No, Jesus, they're wonderful, but... This shit is so fucking expensive, baby."

"Well, that's because it's not exactly 'shit', I guess." she grinned, shrugging.

Caleb sighed before continuing.

"Han, how much did all of this cost to you?"

She rolled her eyes, still cuddling with Charlie.

"Caleb, it's a present. I'm obviously not gonna tell you."

No, she _definitely_ wasn't going to tell him that she had spent around _one thousand freaking dollars_ for his present.

He raised an eyebrow at her, trying to read her mind.

"Oh, c'mon, just say 'thank you' and 'I love you', okay? That'll be enough." she snorted then.

He couldn't help but laugh at that. Then, he carefully placed the open box on the coffee table and pulled her to him —much to Charlie's dismay— until she was on his lap. He looked up at her as he held her waist tightly.

"Thank you. I love you." he whispered then, smiling slightly.

She grinned and started to play with the short locks of his hair through her fingers as she replied.

"You're welcome. And I love you too."

Then, she lowered her head and kissed him, more slowly and passionately than before, both enjoying every second of it. After a couple of minutes, she pulled away and locked eyes with him.

"Seriously though, do you like them? You know, at the jewellery they said you would be able to change the watch or even the cufflinks if you don't like them, so it's okay anyways." she told him.

He grinned and shook his head before replying.

"They're perfect, baby. No one in this world is better than you in choosing jewels and clothes. I love them."

"Great."

"But still, you didn't have to spend all of that money for me. _You_ are my real present, I didn't need anything else."

She smiled down at him.

"You're _so_ cheesy. Anyway it's fine, really." she added.

They kissed again, then he looked up at her and bit his bottom lip.

"So... I was just about to shower... What about you join me?" he grinned then, casually slipping a hand underneath her jeans to gave her asscheek a light squeeze.

She laughed before pressing a chaste kiss against his cheek.

"I think I'll pass... You know, you'll have to wait until tonight for your final birthday present." she whispered seductively into his ear then.

He groaned.

"What that would be?" he asked then, even though he was —obviously— perfectly aware of what she meant.

"Well... Let's just say that the lingerie I'm wearing today under these clothes is not meant to be revealed _this_ early." she smirked.

He licked his lips and smirked back at her, shaking his head.

"You definitely know how to drive me crazy." he said then.

She laughed again before getting off his lap so that he could get up as well.

"Anyway... I want you to come with me somewhere, before anything... Okay?" he asked then, becoming serious.

She pursed her lips and nodded, suspecting where he would take her, then she replied with a small smile on her face.

"Sure."

He smiled back and kissed her forehead before heading to the bathroom. Waiting for him, she just plopped back down on the couch and restarted giving Charlie her attentions.

Not much later, Caleb was back. He was finishing to do the buttons of his shirt up as he walked to her, fully dressed, and his hair wasn't a mess anymore.

"Whoa, Charlie... Are you trying to steal my girl, bud?" he chuckled when he looked up and saw his dog peacefully asleep, with his head on Hanna's lap as she stroked it softly.

"Oh, we do love each other, sorry for you." she replied, poking her tongue out at him.

He smiled and sat down next to her, then he reached out and took the box he had placed on the coffee table earlier, taking the watch out of it.

"Can you help me put it on?" he smiled then, turning to Hanna.

She just smiled back as an answer, taking the watch from his hand. He gave her his left wrist as she carefully put the watch on, hooking it so that it was neither too tight nor too loose.

"Is it okay?" she asked when she was done.

Caleb moved his wrist as he admired his new watch, then nodded.

"Perfect." he smiled then, turning back to her.

Then he nodded toward the cufflinks before saying something else.

"I guess I should save them for a classier occasion. It's not like you wear cufflinks everyday, right?"

"Right."

He smiled at her once again before leaning in and pecking her lips, grabbing her hand and interlocking their fingers in the process.

"So... I wanna go visit my parents at the cemetery. Will you be okay to come?" he asked then, speaking softly.

She moved a hand to stroke his cheek, nodding as she gave him her answer with an emotional look on her face.

"I'll be honored."

* * *

Caleb stopped by some florist throughout their car ride before parking his BMW at the entrance of the cemetery. He then hopped off the car and walked to Hanna's side to open the door for her, taking her hand to help her out. When she was next to him, he locked the car and led her inside holding her hand. They walked in silence until they reached two headstones, the one next to the other. Hanna read the names of Jamie and Claudia Rivers, and recognized their pictures from some Caleb had shown her from his photo albums. He let go of her hand only to bend down and place his flowers in the middle of the two graves, sighing as he stood back up. Then, Hanna took his hand back into hers and gave it a reassuring squeeze.

"It's been seventeen years." he murmured then, looking down at the headstones.

She let go of his hand and hugged him from the side, resting her head against his chest as he automatically wrapped his arm around her shoulders.

"Caleb, you know it wasn't your fault." she whispered then.

He didn't reply, still staring down. After a minute, she broke their silence.

"Do you...need a moment alone with them? I don't know, maybe you want to tell them something in private, I... I can wait outside, if you want."

He shook his head, pulling her closer to him as he mumbled his reply.

"No, I want you to stay. The truth is that... I never tell them anything when I come here."

"How come?"

He shrugged slightly.

"I just think they already know everything." he whispered then, absent-mindedly rubbing his hand up and down her arm.

At that, Hanna moved slightly so she could hug him properly. He returned the hug, holding her by the waist and pressing occasional kisses through her hair, still looking down at the pictures of his mom and dad.

"They would've liked you." he whispered at some point, his lips still half-pressed against the top of her head.

"Yeah?" she replied into his embrace.

"Yeah. You know, my mom was always complaining that I wouldn't bring any girl home. I'm sure that if I had you back then, she would've gone crazy for you... Along with my dad, of course."

She laughed slightly before lifting her head and looking up at him, blinking a couple of times and finally replying.

"Well... It's such a shame that I couldn't get to know them, but I'm sure they were two amazing people, given the wonderful son they gave the world."

He looked down at her with a soft smile on his lips.

"You know, if I didn't know you, I'd think you're being so sweet only because today's my birthday. But I do know you, and I just think that I'm a very lucky man to have found you." he whispered then, pressing his nose against hers as she grinned.

"I love you." she whispered back before connecting their lips.

It was a kiss brief and tender, and Caleb immediately hugged her when they pulled away. He gave her another kiss against her temple, looking one last time to the two headstones at their feet before speaking again.

"Let's go now."

* * *

As they drove away from the cemetery, Caleb apologized with Hanna, saying that maybe going to a cemetery wasn't really the best way to start the day of her boyfriend's birthday. But she had reassured him. Actually, Hanna felt truly honored and moved that he had wanted her to be by his side in such an intimate and emotional moment. She honestly thought that nothing would mean more than that.

They went back to Caleb's since Hanna insisted that it was _his_ birthday so she should be the one driving and taking him around the town, obviously with her car. They took Charlie with them and Hanna finally started the engine.

"So, where are we going?" Caleb asked, feeling a bit weird to be sitting into the passenger seat.

"Well... First, we have to stop by my place because my mom absolutely wants to give you her wishes in person, she even texted me earlier to remind me... Then you'll see. I've planned a pretty good day for us." Hanna flashed him a grin before focusing her attention back to the road.

"I don't have a doubt about it." he chuckled, giving her knee a squeeze.

Minutes later, Hanna pulled up into her own driveway and parked her car. She and Caleb hopped off and opened the trunk to free Charlie as well, then they made their way to the front door and Hanna knocked softly. Ashley opened and smiled widely at the pair, greeting them before giving Caleb a brief hug.

"Happy birthday, Caleb! Come in, please!" she exclaimed then.

"Thanks, mrs Marin." Caleb smiled, as Ashley made them some room to get in before bending down to greet Charlie.

"You can call me Ashley, Caleb. Otherwise, I'll go back to call you 'doctor'." the redhead said closing the front door.

"And you hate being called that." Hanna chuckled, making her way to the couch as Charlie was just content to lie on the carpet of the hallway.

Caleb laughed slightly, taking a seat next to her.

"So, how are things going?" Ashley asked, bringing some cookies to the coffee table before taking a seat on the opposite armchair.

"Everything's cool at the moment, thanks. What about you?" Caleb replied.

"I'm doing fine. What did Hanna got you, though? She didn't want to tell me." the redhead rolled her eyes slightly at her daughter.

"Uh, actually I think she kind of exaggerated with that. I told her not to buy me anything and she showed up at my door this morning bringing something which I know is not exactly cheap, you know. It just wasn't necessary." Caleb muttered, quickly eyeing Hanna. "Here you go... This is just a part of the whole present." he added then, showing Ashley his brand new watch.

"Wow, that's really beautiful!" the woman commented.

"I know." Caleb smiled, turning to Hanna for a moment.

"Well... What else did the present include?" Ashley asked.

"Silver cufflinks. She lost her head, Ashley." Caleb shook his head.

Ashley laughed as Hanna leaned into his side and kissed his cheek.

"I did lose it...for you." the blonde added then, smiling up at him lovingly.

Caleb chuckled and wrapped his arm around her, kissing the top of her head as she rested it on his shoulder.

"Well... What really matters is that you guys are happy, and I see you are. So... Take a cookie, I'm gonna make some coffee." Ashley smiled at the pair before standing up and making her way to the kitchen.

They both grabbed a cookie from the tray on the coffee table and ate it cuddled up to each other in a comfortable silence, as they waited for Ashley to come back. When she did a minute later, she handed them their cups of coffee before taking a deep breath.

"Han, your dad called earlier. He said he wants to come to your graduation." the woman blurted out then, looking at her daughter.

Hanna sighed and rolled her eyes.

"You told him I'm graduating next week?" she asked then, raising an eyebrow.

"No, but the town is small and people like talking." Ashley replied.

"Of course they do." Hanna muttered under her breath, remembering how easily and quickly people had gossiped about her and Caleb.

"Do you have a problem with him being there?" he chiped in, rubbing a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

"No, I just... I don't know. It's not like _I_ have a problem with him, I guess _he_ 's the one who has a problem with me since he left this family with no reason to start another one with another wife and daughter. And now he wants to come see me graduating? I honestly don't care, I just wonder why he wants to be there when he basically missed almost half of my life." the blonde shrugged before taking a sip from her cup.

Caleb glanced at Ashley who just shrugged too.

* * *

After drinking their coffees and staying awhile to chat a little more with Ashley, Hanna and Caleb left, taking Charlie with them. She surprised him with a picnic at the lake, the place he had taken her for the first time around six months earlier, the day he had completely opened his heart up to her. Their lunch only consisted of a couple of sandwiches, but Caleb told her that having lunch at the lake with her, with something she had lovingly made for him, made it the absolutely best lunch ever.

After eating, they stayed sitting on the plaid picnic tablecloth lied on the grass, watching as Charlie examined the familiar area. Hanna sat in between Caleb's legs, leaning back against his chest as the light breeze moved some strands of her hair. He had his arms wrapped around her stomach and his head rested on top of hers, occasionally leaving a kiss through her hair.

"I think I could stay just sitting here this way forever." he whispered at some point.

She grinned, stroking the sides of his thighs up and down as she followed Charlie with her gaze.

"Me too." she whispered back after a moment, cocking her head slightly so that she could press a kiss against his neck.

A shiver ran down her spine when the soft breeze hit her nape. Caleb felt it and tightened his hold around her body as she cuddled closer to him.

"Are you sure you won't mind your dad coming next week?" he asked softly, pressing a kiss against the side of her head.

She shrugged, letting out a short sigh.

"I suppose so." she murmured then.

"Well... The day of your graduation should be a day all about you, and—"

"And today's your birthday and should be a day all about _you_. Babe, it's okay. I don't really want to talk about my dad right now, alright?" she cut him off.

He sighed before replying.

"Okay, sorry."

Hanna bit her lip and turned around to face him with a guilty look into her eyes.

"No, _I_ 'm sorry. I didn't mean to be harsh." she apologized then.

He chuckled, taking both her hands in his and pulling her toward him, interlocking their legs.

"You weren't harsh, baby. I understand that's a delicate topic, and if you don't want to think about it, I won't bring it up again. It's fine, really. I want you to smile, I hate seeing you upset." he told her then, smiling softly and reassuringly.

She nodded and smiled back.

"Thank you." she whispered then, leaning forward to demand a kiss.

Caleb gladly obeyed, naturally resting his hands on each of her legs, rubbing them softly as his mouth met hers. Hanna put her hands on his cheeks as she pushed her lips harder against his, so he opened them up to give her full access to his mouth. Their tongues began duelling slowly, then, after a minute, she pulled away, biting softly on his lower lip. He engulfed her in his arms and kissed the top of her head when she leaned against him.

"Thank _you_ for this awesome birthday." he said softly.

"Are you really enjoying it?" she asked.

"Totally. What's better than spending the whole day with you?"

"So you're not getting bored?"

He chuckled through her hair after hearing her question.

"I'm not bored at all. Why, do you think... _this_ is boring?" he asked then, lowering his head to start drawing a trail of open-mouthed wet kisses down her neck.

She sighed and threw her head back as she let Caleb pleasure her, tangling one of her hands through his hair.

* * *

After spending the rest of the afternoon at the lake and enjoying the view of a breath-taking sunset, Hanna and Caleb took Charlie and went back to her car. Hanna took him back to his place where he wasn't expecting to find Hanna's three best friends with their respective significant others. Throughout the six months of relationship with Hanna, Caleb had found in each of them a pretty good friend. Hanna had given Emily the spare key of Caleb's house that morning, so while the couple was away, they had sneaked inside and prepared a table set for dinner, the dinner itself and even a birthday cake, even though Ashley had been the one who had baked it, actually.

Caleb obviously appreciated the surprise, enjoying the company of his new friends. After laughing, drinking and eventually eating the cake, though, everyone left, leaving Hanna and Caleb alone. They had drunk quite a lot, they weren't totally drunk, but they _definitely_ were a little tipsy. In fact, after having another couple of glasses of wine alone sitting on the patio, all of a sudden Hanna stood up and ran away before finally jumping into the pool, fully clothed.

"What the hell are you doing?" Caleb laughed, approaching the pool.

Hanna laughed as well and relaxed into the water.

"C'mon, jump!" she shouted then.

"What? No!" he shouted back.

"Do you love me, doctor?"

"Of course I do!"

"Then jump!" she laughed, amused.

He chuckled and shook his head before finally giving in. He quickly unbuttoned and took his shirt off, doing the same with his jeans as he kicked his shoes off. before jumping in as Hanna did a small happy dance. When he reemerged, he wrapped his arms around her and placed his forehead against hers.

"You're crazy." he smirked.

"For you." she smirked back.

Caleb smashed his smirk against hers, kissing her passionately. His hands roamed up and down her body as he pushed her against the pool wall. She hooked her legs around his waist and pulled him closer while their tongues tangled together.

Hanna broke the kiss just for a moment to look into his eyes. They were slightly watery because of the alcohol, but she could definitely see a huge love in there.

And Caleb, looking into those eyes of hers, in that same moment, knew that he was finally _truly_ happy.

He restarted the kiss more forcefully, pressing her body harder against the tiles of the pool wall. She was still wearing her jeans, and it was becoming pretty uncomfortable since they were now soaking wet. Caleb, however, proceeded to take her shirt off first, easily pulling it over her head and throwing it somewhere in the water. Then, he picked her up and made her sit on the edge of the pool, positioning himself in between her legs. He took his time to unbutton and unzip her jeans, pulling them down to her ankles where, after slipping her heels off, he finally took them off, throwing them away as well. He looked up and finally took in the sexy lingerie she was wearing for him. He stared up at her for a good ten seconds, slowly moving his tongue across his lower lip in appreciation, and Hanna slightly blushed under his gaze.

"God, you're fucking gorgeous..." he whispered then.

She just smiled at that, biting the corner of her lip. Then, he finally woke up from his daydream and offered her his hand to pull her back into the water with him. She accepted it and in a matter of seconds they were back to make out against the pool wall. Now Hanna was feeling definitely more comfortable wrapping her legs around Caleb's waist and pushed him closer to her. Not much later, she could distinctly feel his hardness against her center and his breathing had become heavier. In fact, he pulled away and gasped for air before moving his mouth to her neck, where he started sucking on her pulsepoint. Hanna threw her head back as her hands found their automatic way to his boxers, blindly pulling them down and freeing his arousal. Caleb grunted at the feeling, moving a hand under her back to unclasp her lacy bra. She helped him remove it, and the second later his mouth was all over one of her breasts as his hand was teasing the other one. A soft moan fell from her lips as well, and once he heard it, he knew he couldn't keep going like that. He _needed_ to have her, right now.

He pulled away from her chest before moving her wet hair off her face and pressing a meaningful kiss to her mouth. Then he placed his forehead against hers and kept an intense eye-contact with her as one of his hands made his way between the crook of her breasts, slowly slipping down her belly before he hooked one finger into the waistband of her panties. He used his other hand to pulled them down completely, and she kicked them off, making them come to the surface a second later. They were still forehead against forehead, still staring at each other, and now they were naked and craving for each other. This time, it was Hanna who searched for his lips, kissing him with all the love she had. The kiss soon became open-mouthed and wet, and she smiled into it when she clearly tasted the wine between their tangled tongues. It tasted exactly like their very first kiss. At some point, she pulled away and pressed a kiss against his neck before nibbling at his earlobe. Caleb grabbed her globes in his hands and was about to push himself into her, but she someway didn't let him.

"Happy birthday, babe..." she whispered into his ear then.

Before he could ask anything, she unwrapped her legs from his waist and turned herself around in the water, pressing her own chest against the wall and giving her back at him. He bit his lip at that, feeling himself more turned on than ever. Maybe it was the alcohol, maybe it was the fact that they were about to do _that_ into the pool _or_ maybe it was the fact that Hanna was sticking her perfect little ass out for him, but now he really couldn't take it anymore. He came closer to her until he could place his hands on her hips, encouraging her to flex her lower half a little bit more for him. She did so, hooking her ankles behind his calfs as he finally pushed himself into her.

They let out a simultaneous grunt in that moment. Caleb rested his chin on one of her shoulders and gently bit on her neck as she moved one arm back to grip his hair, tugging at it when he went back in with another thrust. He tightened his grasp on her hips as he set a rather quick pace, moaning at how amazing she always felt around him. She sighed and squeezed her eyes shut, still tugging at his hair everytime he touched that _something_ into her, loving the new feeling of being with him into the water. At some point, he moved one of his hands from her hip to the edge of the pool, where Hanna's free hand was resting, and interlinked their fingers. He left a trail of kisses over her neck and collarbone as he sped up the pace slightly, making her moan once again.

He used the whole night to show her how much she meant to him, making love to her over and over again into the pool and then into his bed until the sunrise.

He couldn't end the day of his thirty-third birthday in a better way: drinking wine and making love to the girl he loved and who had just given him one of the best birthdays of his life.

* * *

 **A/N: Hi everyone :) Here we go with Caleb's birthday chapter! — Just one thing; if any of you guys need a reminder about what happened to Caleb's parents, you can go back to read chapter 10, there you have everything you need to know :) So... I hope it wasn't too cheesy, just needed a bit of fluff in here :P Also, I hope Halebxxx is happy they finally used Caleb's pool for more "interesting" reasons :P And finally we have some news about Hanna's dad! He's coming to his daughter's graduation, which is next chapter... What's gonna happen? A guest asked when her dad appeared in this story, well, he actually never did, I just mentioned in the first chapter that he's not part of Hanna's life anymore. Let's say that their relationship is like the one on the show, he got married with another woman and he's now living with her and her daughter. And since a lot of you guys asked and seem pretty keen about it, of course I'll write something about the trip they've been planning for so long ;) The chapter after Hanna's graduation is the epilogue, and there you'll see a little of their holiday :) I know, I know, this means that this story is coming to an end, but I still have a lot for you guys to read about Haleb, I'm working on my new story and one-shots and you'll see them soon, I promise :) Anyway, I'm really happy you all seemed to like last chapter, I'm glad if I can put a smile on your face every once in a while :) So, just two chapters left, I hope you're gonna enjoy them like you enjoyed the rest of this story :) As always, thank you so much for the reviews and everything, they're always really appreciated, so... Let me know your thoughts about this chapter as well ;) Have a good week everyone! Love you all! xx -Atramea.**


	32. Chapter 32

Caleb hadn't had the chance to see Hanna that morning. They had talked by phone until late the previous night. She had told him over and over again how nervous she was feeling about her graduation and about seeing her dad again. He had tried to reassure her the best he could, then they had just said goodnight to each other because the next day was going to be a very long day for Hanna.

And there they were now.

Caleb had just showed up. He had parked his car a few blocks away and had now reached the large open area where the graduation of hundreds of students was going to be celebrated. He had gone for a simple white buttoned shirt and a pair of black jeans, not wanting to appear too formal.

"Caleb!" a voice suddenly called him.

He whipped his head around only to find Aria smiling widely at him while approaching him with Ezra, her new boyfriend, a few steps behind her.

"Hey, Aria." Caleb smiled as he gave the petite brunette a quick hug.

"Doc!" Ezra grinned, giving him a handshake.

"Prof!" Caleb grinned back.

Aria had broken up with Andrew several months earlier, then she had started dating Ezra, an high school teacher of the town. Caleb was actually getting along really well with him, probably because he was pretty much his same age.

"The others are not here yet. But I think there's still around half an hour left before the whole thing begins, so..." Aria said then.

"Yeah." Caleb agreed, quickly checking his watch, the one Hanna had given him for his birthday.

"So, how was Hanna feeling?" Ezra asked him.

Caleb shrugged slightly before replying.

"Uh, you know, she's such an anxious person. She was obviously nervous. We stayed on the phone until late last night and she was basically freaking out. I tried to tell her that after all today's just a celebration so she has nothing to worry about but, you know... I'm not sure it worked."

"That's so Hanna." Aria laughed slightly, shaking her head.

"Yeah, totally. Hey, have you guys seen Ashley around? Is she already here?" Caleb asked then.

"We haven't. But we just got here, so she could be around." Aria replied.

"Alright. I'll just take a look, okay? I'll see you guys later." Caleb concluded then.

He walked around the area through the quite big crowd of people, searching for his girlfriend's mom, but with no luck. At some point, he decided to approach a small table where there were some beverages along with some plastic cups, thinking that he could actually enjoy some soda. He suited himself and poured a cup, but as he placed the bottle back on the table, someone approached him.

"Doctor Rivers?"

Caleb lifted his gaze and caught sight of an elegant man in his fifties.

"Yeah, that's me. I'm sorry, do I know you, sir?" he asked then.

The man shook his head briefly before holding his hand out to him.

"I'm Tom Marin, Hanna's dad." he announced then.

Caleb stayed still for a second before taking a deep breath and shaking Tom's hand.

"Nice to finally meet you, mr Marin." he said as he released the older man's hand.

"So it's true."

"What?"

"Well, if you're here now I guess it's because of my daughter. So what they say in town is true... Hanna is dating you."

"Yes, sir. We've been together for six months."

Tom pursed his lips while staring at Caleb, who didn't know how to read his look.

"How old are you?" the older man finally asked.

"I'm thirty-three."

"And you're married, right?"

"I'm divorcing, sir."

"You haven't yet, though."

Caleb sighed and licked his lips before replying.

"No, not yet. But it's just a matter of time. My wife is with another man too and has just had a daughter with him. We both definitely want the divorce so it shouldn't be a problem. We're just waiting for the court to allow us, you know."

"Well... In all honesty, a divorced man wasn't exactly the idea of the person I wanted by my daughter's side."

"With all the respect, mr Marin, I think that a failed marriage shouldn't label anyone, whether it's a man or a woman, and I'm pretty sure you are just like me from this point of view. Besides, Hanna is big enough now and perfectly capable of making her own choices. Anyway, I love her, sir, I promise. I hope you can have the chance to see that and not just be critical to me. I'll probably see you later with Hanna, it was a pleasure meeting you."

And with that, giving Tom one last nod, Caleb turned on his heels and began walking away.

* * *

Huge proud smiles appear on Aria, Spencer, Emily, Ezra, Toby, Ashley and obviously Caleb's faces as they clapped their hands when a professor called Hanna's name and then shook her hand when she came up to him, officializing her graduation just like he had been doing with tons of students for the past hour and an half. The second later, Hanna turned her head to the huge crowd of people and spotted her 'fans' group, flashing them a wide bright grin before going to sit down with the other students. She actually couldn't wait for the whole official thing to be over so that she could just go and hug her mom, her friends and, most of all, Caleb.

Tom was awkwardly standing a few feet away from Ashley, who was chatting and laughing with Caleb as they probably talked about Hanna. She had seen him too, but right now she was trying to focus on the good things, and she wasn't sure that her dad there was one of them.

When all the students had lived their moment of glory just like Hanna, they were all finally free to leave the platform to go to their family and friends and finally celebrate their graduation. Hanna almost tripped over her own feet as she ran toward Caleb, who was coming in her way as Ashley and her friends were just waiting for her behind. When she finally reached him, she literally jumped on him and hugged him the tightest she could as he did the same, settling his hands under her thighs not to make her fall.

"Congratulations, baby! I'm so, _so_ proud of you." he whispered into her ear as he held her.

"Thank you." she replied briefly before pulling away and flashing him a big smile before kissing him hard.

He happily kissed back, probably forgetting for a second that they were in a _very_ public place with a thousand other people, then suddenly pulled back and placed her on her feet as Ashley came to the pair and closed her daughter in a warm hug as well. Her friends were next, and as they all gave Hanna their congratulations, Caleb looked over her shoulder and spotted her dad watching them, probably debating whether or not he should join the group. He instinctively gave him a nod to encourage him, and the man seemed to take his mute advice. Hanna pulled away from Toby's hug as soon as she saw her dad walking toward her. She took in a deep breath and then the one and only Tom Marin was standing right in front of her.

"Congratulations, Hanna. You finally made it." he said.

Hanna immediately raised an eyebrow at him.

" _Finally_? What's that supposed to mean? Oh, right, I'm sorry if I'm not smart as your other daughter Kate who graduated months and months ago...oh, no, wait, she's not your daughter, even though you act like she is and I'm not." she snapped then.

"Hanna, that's not what I—" Tom tried to protest, but she continued, not giving him the chance to speak.

"Whatever, dad. You want to stay here with me and the people I love? Fine, stay. I have no problem with that. But it doesn't mean anything, I'm not forgetting anything you did and, most of all, I'm not forgiving you for years of absence just because you casually showed up at my graduation and gave me your congratulations. Guess what, dad? This is not going to fix a crap."

Hanna's friends awkwardly started walking away to leave some privacy to the family of three, but as Caleb tried to do the same, Hanna reached out for his hand and kept him by her side.

"Hanna, maybe you should just let your dad say what he wants to tell you." Ashley said.

"What? Mom, you think—" Hanna tried to argue, but this time it was Ashley who didn't let her finish.

"I just think that you should at least give him the chance to talk, nothing else. He's still your dad, Hanna, no matter what."

Caleb squeezed Hanna's hand reassuringly as she sighed deeply, looking back to her dad as he spoke again.

"I know I made a lot of mistakes with you, Hanna. I understand that you're mad at me, but I want you to know that I'm sincerely sorry for everything. Most of all, I'm sorry if you've ever felt neglected by me."

"Of course I have." the blonde rolled her eyes at the obviousness.

"Okay, and I'm sorry. But I see...you're doing great, anyway." Tom replied, attempting a smile.

Hanna rolled her eyes again, then her dad continued.

"By the way, doctor Rivers and I introduced to each other earlier. So I even met your..."

Tom stopped in his tracks, not sure if he really wanted to use the word 'boyfriend' for the man standing beside his daughter. He hadn't had a very good impression of him. He was older than Hanna, he was divorcing from a woman who just had a daughter from another man, Hanna was his secretary... There were too many thing which didn't convince him about their relationship.

" _Boyfriend_ , dad. Boyfriend. Yes, Caleb is my boyfriend. You could at least make an effort not to look so horrified saying it." Hanna snapped.

"I'm sorry, I just... I find it weird. I mean, I thought you and Sean would stay together, you know. Honestly, I kind of saw him better with you, which is probably why I have to get used to the fact that now you're with the dentist of the town, instead." Tom replied uncertainly.

"Yeah, well, Sean and I broke up because he's a cheater just like you, dad. And I'm gonna be honest, I don't care whether you'll get used or not to the fact that Caleb and I are together now. It doesn't really concern me your opinion, I'm sorry. We love each other, everybody just has to deal with it. Even if, actually, there was this small part of me which was hoping that my dad would've been different than the stupid people of this town and would have actually looked over the fact that Caleb is older than me and was married and my boss and shit, but... Here we are. I knew I shouldn't have expected anything different from you. It was _so_ stupid of me." Hanna replied harshly.

Her dad sighed deeply before looking down at his own feet.

"Look, dad... I'm sorry. I appreciated that you came today, I really did, even if it probably doesn't seem like that, but... I'm gonna need some time, alright? I'm gonna need a lot of other things too, actually. You can't just show up one day and everything's okay, do you realize it, right?" Hanna added.

Tom raised his head and looked back at his daughter, nodding slowly before replying.

"I get it. Yeah, well... Have fun. I promise I'll stay in touch."

Hanna nodded and smiled gratefully at his dad. Yes, she did smile at him, and that was already a big thing.

"Bye, Hanna." he smiled slightly at her.

She took a deep breath and stepped forward, awkwardly giving him a short hug.

"Bye, dad." she whispered finally, watching him walk away as Caleb wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

* * *

Soon Hanna's graduation party moved to her own house, where Caleb and her friends followed her. They ate, drank, danced and everything until outside it was dark. Ashley left her daughter there with her friends and boyfriend, deciding it was better to spend the night at one of her friends'.

Hanna looked like she was having a lot of fun, but Caleb could perfectly tell that she was still thinking about what had happened with her dad. That's why, at some point, he came up to her while everyone else was having a beer together listening to some weird story Toby was telling.

"Hey, I'm going outside to smoke a cigarette... Come with me?" he asked her, smiling and offering his hand to her.

"Sure." she smiled back, accepting it.

Once they were outside, Caleb sat on the porch and pulled Hanna on his lap, staring up at her.

"Are you alright?" he asked softly, stroking her thigh.

"Yeah." she replied, but he knew her smile was fake at this point.

He gave her a knowing look before speaking again.

"You're still upset because of your dad, aren't you?"

"No, I... Okay, maybe yes, a little."

"Baby, you barely let him talk, though."

"I know, but I was so angry, you know? Like angry _angry_. I couldn't completely control myself. Plus, yeah, I might have overreacted, but you saw it, he did it all wrong. Every single word he said was the worst word in the worst moment. He's a mess. Besides, when he started talking about you, judging you, I just... It was the breaking point. I hate it when they just throw you in the middle of everything, and it's even worse if we're speaking of my dad, a person who should be able to understand me."

He smiled softly at her and wiped a tear of anger just slipped from her eye with the pad of his thumb.

"Okay, okay... Calm down now. You'll see, next time is gonna be better. Right now, let's talk about...happy things." he said then, reaching out for the inner pocket of his jacket.

She thought he was going to take his pack of cigarettes, but he didn't. Next thing she knew, he was handing her a paper envelope.

"What's this?" she asked confused.

"One of my two presents for your graduation." he grinned up at her.

"What? _Two_ presents? For my _graduation_ , Caleb? It's not my birthday, you know. You really didn't have to."

"C'mon, just open it. This one is something you should be expecting, by the way."

Hanna was genuinely confused, but eventually obliged. Inside the envelope, there were two plane tickets to Italy under her and Caleb's names. She looked back at him as a huge grin appeared on her lips.

"Babe..." she murmured then, trying to contain her emotion.

"Hey, I had promised I would take you there. Anyway, there's no date on the tickets. We can go whenever we want. But I was thinking that maybe we should go this summer, sometime around June or July, you know, so we could go to the beach. So this way we're also going to celebrate our first anniversary there, right?" he grinned up at her.

She shook her head because she just couldn't believe how Caleb had the power to always make her feel better. She cupped his face and leaned in, capturing his lips in hers. They shared a gentle kiss before pulling away, smiling at each other.

"I love you so much." she whispered then, playing with the short hair at his nape and resting her forehead against his.

He smiled smugly at her and squeezed one of her thighs.

"I love you too. But, hey, I have something else for you." he said then before reaching for the other inner pocket of his jacket.

She watched him attentively as he took something from there before handing his closed fist to her. She raised an eyebrow, looking at him quizzically.

"Give me your hand." he smiled at her.

She did was she had been told to, placing her open hand under his closed fist. Only then, he opened it and a small gold necklace fell into her palm. She moved her hand closer to her face to study the object he had just given her. It was very beautiful.

"Caleb, it's wondeful. And... Oh God, it's gold, I... I don't even want to imagine how much did you spend on this. You didn't have to, seriously." she said then, looking back at him and smiling softly.

He smiled back and shrugged.

"Actually, I didn't buy it. You know, it... It was my mom's." he told her then.

Hanna froze and widened her eyes at him before trying to put some words together to reply to him.

"Oh my God, no, I... I can't... I can't accept it."

She pushed the necklace back to him, but he just chuckled and shook his head at her.

"I want you to have it, baby. Yeah, this jewel means a lot of me, and that's exactly why you need to accept it. I thought about it, and... Yeah, I definitely want you to have something which belonged to my family. I don't have many things, but... You know, I thought you would look so beautiful with this necklace. I'm sure about that, actually. So please, take it. Do it for me. Please." he whispered to her then.

Hanna sighed and looked down at the necklace into her hand. It wasn't just a beautiful and expensive item, it was also something which sentimentally meant a lot to Caleb. He was keeping to surprise her with his gestures of absolute love, and she couldn't feel more honored of the man by her side.

"In the end, you always get to make me emotional." she finally said, rolling her eyes to fight her tears back as she closed the necklace into her own hand.

Caleb smiled softly at her before kissing her cheek and engulfing her into a tight warm hug. She let him cradle her for a while before pulling away and giving him a small smile.

"Thank you." she mumbled sincerely as a tear rolled down her cheek.

He smiled back, quickly wiping her tear away before replying.

"Don't thank me. Now stop crying and let me put it on you."

She nodded and turned around on his lap. He moved her hair to the side and carefully put the necklace around her neck, then he placed a soft kiss on her newly exposed skin.

"Done. And now let me see you." he said then.

Hanna turned back around and settled properly on his lap once again, showing him her new necklace. He grinned and finally gave his opinion.

"Perfect."

She smiled back at him before leaning down and kissing him again, this time way longer than earlier. They basically fell into a sweet yet hard make out session which left them both breathless when they had to pull away for air.

"Surprises are not over yet, though." he smirked then.

She widened her eyes at him. What else now?

"Well, it's not a present, but... Earlier this evening, while I'm pretty sure you were dancing with Aria, my attorney called me and... Yeah, by the end of next week I should officially be a non-married man." he continued, raising his eyebrows at her.

Hanna made a huge smile at that. It was a day _definitely_ full of emotions.

"Are you being serious right now?" she asked then, cupping his face once again and stroking his cheeks.

"Totally." he laughed, moving his hands up and down her sides.

She gave him another quick kiss before grinning at him.

"This is such good news, babe." she said then.

"I know, right? So... See? This was an amazing day, baby."

"You're right." she nodded as he hugged her again.

"Wanna go back inside?" he murmured into her ear after a minute, still holding her.

"No... I want to stay here with you a little longer." came her muffled reply.

He smiled and kissed her clad shoulder. He agreed with her. Being into each other's arms felt too good.

They both couldn't wait for their trip to Italy. It felt like, someway, that would be the real start of their life together.

* * *

 **A/N: So that's it :) Only the epilogue left, though :( Anyway... I hope you all appreciated the chapter! Finally Hanna's dad appeared, even though it wasn't a really nice encounter... Things between them are still pretty complicated, aren't they? But... What about Caleb's surprises for her graduation? I hope you liked them! So they're going to Italy —my country :P— and you'll see some of their vacation in the epilogue, which is coming next ;) I'm really happy you enjoyed last chapter about Caleb's birthday and you appreciated his choice to take her to the cemetery to visit his parents. In this chapter, he also gave her his mom's necklace. I think these gestures truly show how big is the love Caleb feels for Hanna :) It's like she is the closest thing he has to the meaning of "family", which I think is just like in the show, by the way. That's why he wanted to give her something which belonged to his mom :) So... Thank you so much for all the reviews and everything, as always. I'm so so grateful for all the support I received for this story, and I really hope you guys enjoyed this chapter just like the rest of the story, and I also hope you're gonna enjoy the epilogue :) But I want to remind you that I have some Haleb one-shots —and I'm also thinking not to leave my latest story, "Love doesn't just go away", just a one-shot, I might turn it into a two or maybe three chapters short story since a lot of you guys asked ;)— and also a new AU coming up after this story is over, so don't worry ;) I really look forward to reading your reviews, so let me know! I promise you're gonna have a great, spicy epilogue ;) Thank you so much for reading and everything, love you! And happy Easter everyone — I hope you all ate as much chocolate as I did :) xx -Atramea.**


	33. Chapter 33

**_Epilogue_**

Hanna woke up to the feeling of Caleb's fingers between her legs and his muscular body engulfing hers from behind. She smiled, coming back to her senses as he started working on her most sensitive spot.

"Good morning..." his groggy morning voice mumbled against the shell of her ear.

She was about to say it back when his thumb and pointer finger closed around the small button between her legs. She gasped and absent-mindedly pushed her ass backward, becoming aware of Caleb's morning arousal behind her. He moaned as soon as he felt her soft globes coming to contact with his crotch, then bit down on the side of her neck.

"Shit..." she finally mumbled, squeezing her eyes shut as he kept stroking her clit with his fingers.

At the same time, he was trying to find some sort of relief by pushing his length up and down her crack, feeling already turned on by her soft moans.

Italy was being a total heaven to them.

They've been there for a week and they still had another week to go. The place was wondeful, the weather too, the food as well, but the awesome thing was being together all the time, _enjoying_ the bed of their hotel room all night long... _and_ the morning after.

Caleb suddenly moved his free hand to her centre too, suddenly slipping a finger inside of her. Hanna moaned and threw her head back as he started sucking on her now exposed pulsepoint, moving his finger in and out as he continued playing with her clit. At some point, the fingers inside of her became two, and Hanna started moving totally franctically against him, struggling to find her release as he finally left her pulsepoint, proud of the mark that was already beginning to form on her skin. The knot inside of her quickly untied when he curved his fingers inside of her and pinched her clit at the same time, letting her came over his hand.

"Jesus, Caleb..." she panted.

He kissed her cheek and finally removed his hands from inside of her. He was feeling painfully hard, but he knew he had to give her some time to recover from her own orgasm before having his way with her.

Hanna turned around in his arms as soon as she realized that her muscles would allow her to move and immediately connected her mouth to his, pushing her tongue against his and enjoying his taste. He cupped her face and took control of the kiss as her hands found their natural way down, slowly moving up and down his cock. He hissed into her mouth as she started speeding up the pace, then he moved his hands down her back to cup her ass and push her closer to him, encouraging her to let go of his length to finally be able to enter her. She did so, moving her hand to rest on his hip as he gripped her thigh and lifted her leg slightly to have a better access to her body. He easily slid his cock into her, immediately rolling their bodies so that she was lying on her back and he was on top of her.

Hanna settled her hands on his back and Caleb urged her to lift her legs as much as possible so that he could go deep into her, so she rested her ankles at his hips as he pushed inside, earning another moan from her lips. He stilled for a second, fully buried into her, kissing her mouth and finding her tongue as he began moving back and forth. He gripped her legs and used them as a lever to dive himself into her as his mouth searched for one of her breasts. She tangled a hand through his hair and focused on both his tongue and cock before deciding it was time to play her game.

She arched her back and urged him to roll over, making him lie on his back and straddling him, not disconnecting their bodies. Caleb rested his hands on her hips and followed her movements as Hanna started riding him. He looked up at her and bit his lip seeing how sexy she looked right now. Her eyes were closed and her head was slightly tilted back, she was totally disheveled and her lips were parted. Caleb let her conduce for a while before pulling her down to him, kissing her hard while thrusting up into her. She rested her forehead against his and returned his kiss, holding onto his shoulders. She pulled away for air but still with her forehead pressed against his, struggling to keep her eyes open to mantain eye-contact with him. He smiled slightly at her, feeling her heavy breathing tickling his lips, then he pressed another quick peck on her mouth. When she quickened the pace, though, he felt his load starting to come, so he quickly rolled them over again and returned on top of Hanna. Once again, he pressed their foreheads together, feeling a slight strate of sweat between them, and she looped her legs tightly behind his back, pulling him to her as close as possible. He went deep into her with a couple of sharp thrusts, gently biting on one of her cheeks as she didn't do anything to hold back her sighs, and with one last thrust, she felt Caleb spill into her. He groaned loudly and buried his fingernails into the soft flesh of her thighs, weakly keeping to thrust to ride his orgasm out.

"Babe, please... Don't stop..." Hanna managed to breath out, close to her second orgasm of the day.

Caleb gritted his teeth as he forced himself to keep going, even though the only thing he would have wanted to do in that moment was just collapsing on top of her and let his cock have his deserved rest, but Hanna needed to be pleased, and that was the first thing to Caleb. He pushed in and out another few times and finally Hanna's walls clenched around him, hugging his length as she came undone and shrieked against his mouth, which was already claiming another kiss.

Finally, Caleb's exhausted body fell on hers, creating a mess of naked and sweaty limbs. They breathed in and out, quickly, trying to catch some energy. At some point, he used his hand to help himself pull out of her, kissing her collarbone before finally rolling off her, lying next to her body with his arms outstretched above his head. She was pretty much in the same position, her chest rising and fall at the rhythm of her heavy breathing.

Honestly, Hanna wasn't expecting to have so much sex throughout this vacation before leaving, but hell, she wasn't complaining _at all_.

She turned her face slightly and looked at him through her narrowed eyes, feeling another wave of arousal when she noticed the light coat of sweat covering his amazing tanned abs. He couldn't see that she was looking at him since his eyelids were still shut, but he could definitely feel it.

"So... Was that an enough nice good morning?" he breathed out, not opening his eyes.

She smirked and dragged her body closer to him.

"That was _a hell_ of a good morning..." she whispered, roaming her hand over his perfect upper half and leaving a kiss against his chest.

He laughed slightly and kicked the messy sheet off, which were hanging over his calf, rolling on his side as well to face Hanna as he finally opened his eyes. The first thing he noticed was that her nipples were still hard and erected, and he might have stared a little too long because Hanna blushed and brought an arm to cover her bare chest. He furrowed his eyebrows and looked up at her, appearing slightly disappointed.

"Don't stare like that... It's creepy." she defended herself.

He chuckled and shook his head, reaching out to fix her hair — or better, _try to_.

"I'm pretty sure you were staring at my abs first." he argued then, cockily raising an eyebrow at her.

She blushed even more.

"You're wrong." she muttered in reply.

He bit his lip, knowing he was right, but decided not to go further. He just placed a hand on her hip before brushing it up and down her side, looking into her eyes.

"Wanna go to the beach today?" he asked softly.

"Sure."

He smiled at her, but before he could say anything else, there was a knock on the door.

"Must be the room service... Pull the covers up." he told her then.

He quickly hopped off the bed and picked his boxers from the floor, pulling them up as he walked to the door under Hanna's amused gaze. He exchanged a couple of words with the guy who brought their breakfast in on a cart before closing the door once the guy was gone. Then, he moved the cart to the bed and lifted the lid of the tray, revealing two cups of strawberries and cream, with extra cream.

"I ordered while you were still asleep. Are you okay with this? We can just call and change if you want something else." he asked, sitting on the edge of the bed.

She smiled at him as she sat up, hugging him from behind before placing a kiss on his bare shoulder.

"You know I love strawberries. It's perfect." she added, reaching out for a cup.

They settled themselves on the bed, and once they decided they were comfortable, they started eating their strawberries. Every now and then, Caleb would feed her a strawberry just to be able to say that she had some cream around her lips so that he could have an excuse to kiss her saying that it was just to wipe the cream off.

Hanna was seriously happy. It had been a year since she and Caleb had started their relationship by now, and she loved him everyday more. He was also officially divorced, so now she really felt like he was only hers, and it was seriously a great feeling.

When their cups were finally empty, they stayed in bed cuddling for a while before going to the beach like they had planned. She had her head resting on his chest, one of her legs swung in between his and her fingers were softly tracing the outlines of his abs. Caleb, instead, had one of his arms behind his head and the other wrapped around her body, his fingers absent-mindedly wandering over her bare back ever so softly.

"You know, I had a weird dream last night." Hanna whispered out of the blue.

"What was it like?" Caleb asked.

"Never mind. You would laugh."

"I promise I won't. I'm curious, c'mon, tell me."

She pulled herself up on her elbows and looked into his eyes before beginning.

"Well... I woke up at your place, but you weren't in bed. Then I heard some noises from downstairs, it sounded like you had company. So I went downstairs, and..."

Caleb raised an eyebrow at her pause.

"And?" he urged her to continue.

"And you were making pancakes, and... There were two kids sitting at the table. Two girls."

"Kids?"

"Yeah, kids. Like six years old or something. Yeah, I... I think they were our daughters."

He grinned at that.

"See? I knew you'd think it was ridicolous." she sighed.

"Not at all. I'm smiling because I think it's cute, actually. So... Go on, what happened next?"

Hanna smiled at his curiousity. She placed her chin on his chest and took a deep breath before speaking again.

"Well... You kissed me good morning and gave me a pancake, so I sat next to one of the girls and I started eating. You know, not much happened, even though I'm pretty sure Charlie came up to us at some point and I reproached one of the girls when she tried to give him some of her pancake."

Caleb laughed softly, casually interlacing their fingers over his chest.

"Did the girls have a name or something? You remember calling them with their names?" he asked then.

Hanna shook her head.

"I guess they had a name, but I can't remember now." she added.

"Well, did we all look happy, at least?"

"Yup."

"So... A happy family?"

"A happy family." she nodded.

Caleb smiled and sat up in bed, still looking into Hanna's eyes.

"You know, I gotta be honest—" he started, but she cut him off.

"Did you have a similar dream before?"

He chuckled slightly, shaking his head before answering.

"No. But... Yeah, the truth is that I... I thought about us like _that_. A lot of times, actually."

Hanna just smiled at him, not really sure about what she should say. Eventually, Caleb went on.

"I mean... I think it's pretty normal for a person of my age to have some sort of thoughts. You know, I love you, we're good together, and... Even if my first marriage didn't go well, I can't deny that if I look forward, I can totally see myself married to you and living with you and our kids. And Charlie, obviously."

Hanna kind of felt like it was some serious stuff to discuss and, honestly, she had always tried to avoid the whole wedding-kids topic. She knew Caleb was in his thirties unlike her, she was aware of what was running in a dependable man like him's mind in that period of life, she knew it was nature. She _knew_. And she also knew how much he loved her, he was showing his love for her everyday and she couldn't complain. So she definitely knew that they were going to have this talk sooner or later, and now she had also been the one to bring the whole thing up with her dream.

What she did _not_ know — _or better_ , she still hadn't realized— was how _she_ actually felt about the whole wedding-kids topic. Yeah, she loved Caleb with all of herself, but she just graduated and she was still _only_ twenty-four. She was young. She still wanted to live her life. It wasn't that she wasn't sure of the man by her side, that he was the one who she wanted to spend her life with, it was just that she wanted to enjoy her life for a little more before dedicate herself to something big like a family. It was nature too, after all.

"Sure, and I love you too, but now we should put something on if we still want to go the beach." Hanna eventually said, quickly getting up from the bed under Caleb's confused gaze.

 _Was she avoiding the discussion?_

* * *

Caleb smiled as Hanna walked out of the water, tilting her head back to pull the wet hair off her face. He watched her gorgeous figure walk toward him over the sand, finally reaching the towel where he was lying on, trying to get a sunbath.

"You should have totally come. The water is perfect today." she commented when she came to him.

"The sun is too." he grinned up at her, slightly pulling his sunglasses down to look at her directly.

She rolled her eyes slightly before sitting on top of him, putting each of her legs at either side of him as he slightly shuddered at the contact of her wet body against his warm and dry one. Though, he didn't complain, putting his hands on her thighs and stroking her wet skin softly.

"Later I'll come in the water with you, I promise." he smiled at her then.

"You better." she commented in reply, tracing casual patterns on his chest.

Caleb smirked, then she leaned down to kiss him, slightly moving her hips forward in the process. He groaned before reluctantly disconnecting their lips, making eye-contact with her.

"Don't start stuff you can't finish, baby." he whispered, raising an eyebrow.

She sighed and smiled before rolling off him, lying on the towel next to his to sunbathe as well. He pulled himself on his side to look at her, propping his elbow up to sustain his head.

"Can I ask you something?" he spoke then.

"Sure." Hanna replied, her eyes closed under the sunlight.

Caleb bit his lip before going on.

"I kind of have a feeling that you get uncomfortable everytime the word 'wedding' or 'kids' come up. Is that right?"

Hanna bit his lip as well, still keeping her eyes closed.

"Caleb—" she started, but he cut her off before she really had the chance to reply.

"Look, Han... It's fine. I mean, it's fine anyways. I understand, okay? I understand that you're young, that we've only been together for a year, just... Don't ever feel underpressure. Yes, I'm nine years older than you and we both know that, but I don't want to rush into things just because I'm over thirty, so... It's okay, I'm not running away because you don't want to move to the next stage, I promise. Just... You... Don't run away either because you think I want to move forward, because I'll wait for you. I had been waiting my whole life to meet you, I don't care about getting married today, next month, next year or in a million years, okay? I just want to be with you, so... Please just tell me that everything's okay."

At this point, Hanna had opened her eyes and was staring at him. Though, no words came out of her mouth, so Caleb decided to say more.

"You know... I'd love to marry you. I _want_ to marry you. And, deep into my heart, I know I _will_ marry you, someday. But... Whenever and _if_ you ever feel ready. And same thing goes for kids. I'm here and I'm not going anywhere, okay? After everything we've been through together, I sure won't let our age difference be the problem."

This time, as soon as Caleb closed his mouth, Hanna smiled. He was such a sweetheart and she was perfectly aware of how lucky she was to have him by her side. She went on her side too, then silently reached out and took one of his hands in hers, interlacing their fingers.

"Babe... I'm not going anywhere either." she said softly, looking up at him.

Caleb nodded, looking a little worried.

"Good. But... Can you just tell me how do you feel about it? Just be honest, because I think I might go crazy if I don't get to know that." he added nervously.

Hanna couldn't help but smile at that, toying with his fingers.

"Alright, I'll tell you, but I need to know something first." she replied then.

"Sure. What?"

"We're not here in Italy in this uber romantic and full of love-making vacation because you're planning to propose, are we?"

He laughed slightly, shaking his head.

"No, I promise. You know me, I'm not that cliché." he replied then.

"Okay." she laughed.

"Wait... Were you scared I was going to drop the question sooner or later?"

Hanna rolled her eyes.

"I wasn't _scared_ , okay? Jeez, I get scared when I watch a horror movie, not when my boyfriend gets on one knee." she muttered then.

"So what were you?" he raised an eyebrow, smirking.

"Well, I was... I don't know, just... Not ready, maybe?"

"Okay, that's understandable. It's totally fine, I told you."

Hanna shook her head vigorously before replying.

"No, Caleb. It's not like I wasn't ready as in I was going to say no. I wasn't ready as in I don't know if I would have said yes or no."

Caleb looked utterly confused, so Hanna took a deep breath and went on.

"If I get uncomfortable when you speak about this kind of things, it's because I don't really know how I feel. I know it sounds pretty twisted, but... Here it is, I get nervous because there are some things which make me want to say yes, and some things which make me _not_ want to say yes... _yet_. That's the truth. If I was actually sure that I don't want to move to the next stage with you yet, I swear I'd tell you. But it's not like that. I'm just... Confused."

Caleb smiled at her before pulling her body against his by their joined hands. He dragged her onto his towel and then hugged her, holding her tight against his chest.

"Then it's okay too." he whispered against her hair.

"Anyway... I agree with you. I know I will marry you, someday. And I also know that we'll make a bunch of wonderful kids... I mean, I'm even dreaming about it. I... I just don't know when, but I know it will happen." she shrugged, looking up at him and smiling slightly.

"You said two daughters, right?" he grinned.

"Two blonde daughters." she nodded.

"Mmm... I'll be the only man rounded by three gorgeous women. Sounds like a perfect life to me."

"You're forgetting Charlie." Hanna reminded him, smirking.

Caleb laughed, jokingly rolling his eyes.

"Oh, speaking of which, my mom sent me this earlier." she quickly added, reaching for her phone behind her head, which was on her towel.

She unlocked it and went through her messenger application before handing the phone to Caleb. He looked at the display and smiled when he saw a picture of Charlie at Hanna's house, lying on the sofa. Ashley had offered herself to keep the dog for the period of Hanna and Caleb's vacation, and he couldn't be happier about that. If he trusted one person beside Hanna to leave his beloved dog to, was right her mom.

"Looks like he's relaxing too, huh?" he grinned.

"Just like his daddy right now."

"Oh, trust me... I'm better than him." he handed her phone back to her before pressing a kiss to the tip of her nose. "But I miss him a little bit, I gotta be honest."

"You're _so_ cute, doctor."

"We're back at it, aren't we?" Caleb rolled his eyes.

Hanna laughed before leaning in and starting a deep and passionate kiss. Needless to say, Caleb accepted it, trying to keep it publicly appropriate since they were currently sunbathing on a quite crowded beach. When he pulled away, though, he was breathing heavily.

"You keep going like this and I'll have to get you naked right here and now." he groaned.

"You just can't get enough, doctor. Anyway, for now, if you don't want to get arrested, you'll only have to be happy with a swim with me." she finally said, standing up and grabbing his arm to pull him up on his feet as well.

Caleb rolled his eyes but followed her, and the couple ran together toward the ocean. They got in the water and, in a matter of seconds, they were once again all over each other.

* * *

That same night, after having dinner in an excellent restaurant, Caleb and Hanna returned to the beach. They had found out that they absolutely loved going there by night, when no one else was around. It created such a peaceful atmosphere and they enjoyed that.

They had lied a towel on the sand and were sitting there, looking at the ocean, in a comfortable silence and with two glasses of wine. Caleb had insisted to take two glasses from their hotel and he had also chosen a bottle of nice wine.

"So... Here we are." Hanna sighed as Caleb poured her some wine.

"What do you mean?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

She shrugged slightly, taking a sip from her glass before replying.

"You and I, a year later, with two glasses of wine. I kind of have a dejà-vu feeling."

He grinned, taking a sip himself before placing his glass down. He stared at her for a moment, proudly noticing how beautiful she looked with his mom's necklace.

"Well... A lot of stuff happened throughout this year. But, you know, I honestly wouldn't change a thing if I could. Yeah, I've been an idiot in several occasions, but... I mean, we're here now, aren't we?" he said softly after a minute.

"Yeah. We're here." Hanna smiled largely.

Caleb took her hand and brought it to his lips, leaving a soft kiss on the back of it before speaking again.

"And about all the stuff we talked about earlier... Look, you can also forget all we said, okay? I don't want you to get confused. I... I just know two things, Hanna. I know that I love you and that I'm happy. And now, if you tell me that you feel the same, I know that everything's perfect like this. After all, our relationship started like some sort of a bet. But we did win that bet, right? Well... If you want, I'm ready to keep going with this bet and just see where it's going to take us. After all that happened, I trust what's between us more than anything else, so... That's it. We don't need to do or plan anything. We can just keep going and see what happens, like we always did."

Hanna smiled again before leaning in to kiss him, as the light ocean breeze tickled the skin of her neck.

"We didn't just win. We _triumphed_." she whispered then.

He nodded and smiled at her.

"And... I'm happy and I love you too." Hanna concluded, pressing her nose against his before searching for another kiss.

Caleb half-laughed against her lips when Hanna pressed her body closer against his, accidentally causing her glass to fall onto the towel. Despite the wine now poured on the towel, though, their kiss didn't end, and it was going to last very, _very_ longer... Just like their love; a love that no one would've bet on, nevertheless it was still there, stronger than ever.

* * *

 **A/N: :):) So... I'm so sorry you all had to wait so long to read this epilogue, but I was very —extremely— busy with college :( Anyway, I don't want to get you guys bored with this stuff... I just hope you enjoyed this very last chapter of my longest story —so far— and that it didn't disappoint any of you :) Honestly, when I first started writing this story, I didn't know where I was exactly going. Like I said several times, it was sort of an experiment, and your reviews and support me encouraged me to keep going. I'm happy about the final result, all in all, and I hope you all are as well. It was a crazy ride but I honestly had a lot of fun ;) Now, speaking about this epilogue, I know that it wasn't an explosive one, but I didn't want it like that in the first place. I think this whole story has already had sooooo much drama, so I had planned to get here having things between Haleb definitely calmer. I also know that some of you were hoping for Caleb proposing, but I thought it was nice to leave him and Hanna just dating, still simply enjoying their everyday happiness. Plus, this gives me the chance to "leave the door open" in case I decide to write a sequel ;) Though, if I do, it won't happen anytime soon because it's not really the best time since my free time is not much lately — as you could see. But never say never, so... ;) So, now I want to thank each one of you for reading, reviewing, favoriting, following or whatever this story :) The numbers seriously impressed me, and I can't be happier to end this story seeing these results. So, again, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU! If you want to leave me a final review, telling me whatever you want, not only about this epilogue but —if you want— even about the whole story, well... It'd make me happy :) I think I have no more left to say now, so I just send all of you a big hug, until next time! — You're gonna get the final chapter of "Love doesn't just go away" as soon as possible and then I will start my new story, hoping to find you all there :) Thank you again, love you guys! :) xx -Atramea.**


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